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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22490302">Okay, so, what exactly happened last night?</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lixel/pseuds/Lixel'>Lixel</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Falsettos - Lapine/Finn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - College/University, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Everyone is Queer, F/F, F/M, For reasons, Like really really slow, M/M, Marvin are Trina are besties and I'm living for it, Marvin is a theater nerd, Mendel is trans, POV Marvin (Falsettos), POV Whizzer Brown, REALLY slow, This Is Gonna Take A While, Trina is bi, because i don't know how straight people behave, enjoy, i mean like, party night, slowburn, they just don't like don't like each other, they're not really enemies, this is gonna be some 70k word shit, well marvin doesn't like whizzer</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-01-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 15:21:26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>55</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>74,020</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22490302</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lixel/pseuds/Lixel</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>„Marvin doesn‘t want a Hook-Up, and I asked him what‘s the worst that could happen,“ Charlotte explained with glassy eyes.<br/>„Herpes,“ Trina shrugged, „But Marvin, some things are worth herpes.“</p>
<p>Trina's 21st birthday turns out to be the weirdest night of their lives.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Dr. Charlotte/Cordelia (Falsettos), Trina/Mendel Weisenbachfeld, Whizzer Brown/Marvin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>432</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>241</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Be thankful for what we have</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>EDIT FROM JUNE 2020: Hey, dear person who is reading this fic from the beginning on!!!<br/>When I started writing this thing I would have never guessed how <em>long</em> it's gonna get. So, honey, you got a big storm coming...<br/>However, English is actually not my native language and even though I wrote and uploaded almost 60K words of this fic, I am still very anxious about my language abilities. Anyway, I know that since English is only my second language, it is totally fine to make mistakes, so if someone points them out to me it will be received with much thankfulness.<br/>So, if you, dear reader (re-reading or only starting reading this little story) find any language mistakes (or weird phrasing), please, I BEG you, point them out to me so I can correct them. (This also applies to any inconsistencies regarding the plot or some characters behaving OOC.)<br/>As soon as I finish this fic I will go over the whole thing again and correct any mistakes that I see. And since I am only human, I will probably oversee some, and that's why it would be incredibly helpful for you to point out any mistakes or inconsistencies.<br/>You can either do that in the comments below or DM me on my Instagram (@hometownforest) or discord (@lixel) if you'd rather do that.<br/>Either way, I promise that you will not make me feel bad or something like that in any way, on the contrary, it would really, really help me to improve my English even more.<br/>That's been a hell of an author's note, I know, but it's just really, REALLY important to me to provide the best possible quality in both language and plot. So now, I hope you enjoy this little (well, maybe not the most suitable adjective) fic of mine, it's been written with lots of love and hopefully brings you, dear reader, some joy and a few hours of distraction from life.<br/>Enjoy!</p>
<p>I'd like to dedicate this one to the guys that forced me to join them going out, the nightclub we went to and the taxi driver, who brought us home.<br/>(Basically, I took the weirdest night of my life and wrote parts of it into a fanfiction.)<br/>((At least the parts I remember.))<br/>English is not my native language, so sorry for any mistakes!</p>
    </blockquote><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marvin is not a party person. Trin and Charles talked him into this.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I wrote this on my phone at 1 am on a night train through central China. You can do with this information whatever you want.<br/></p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Neither of them was people who went to clubs, really. Actually, Marvin had never been to one at all. In fact, the day he turned 21, he refused to open the door to his apartment until the following morning to prevent Trina and Charlotte from tricking him into a night out.<br/>
When Charlotte turned 21, neither Trina nor Marvin planned something big. Charlotte just invited the two of them over to have a cozy little movie night.<br/>
Trina was the last one to turn 21. This time, they finally decided to go clubbing and celebrate their friend. Well, Charlotte proposed the idea, Trina thought it could be fun, and Marvin‘s protest got ignored for the most part.</p><p>Marvin tried to get out of it. When the day came, Trina‘s birthday, he dropped by at her room after dinner to give her his present, already an excuse about homework or something on his lips. The door was opened by an already tipsy Charlotte.<br/>
„You, Marv, need a drink,“ she announced and pulled him inside quickly, „We already shared a whole bottle of wine.“<br/>
„Happy Birthday, Trin. And about tonight-“ Marvin started but got interrupted by Trina herself, who sat on the floor in front of her mirror, doing her makeup.<br/>
„Don‘t you dare to chicken out,“ she took another big sip from the glass that stood next to her, „You still owe me for breaking up with me.“</p><p>„Jesus Christ, Trina, it‘s been six years, and the first thing you said was <em>Oh thank God</em>," Marvin muttered and sat down on the bed, „You can‘t always play that card when you want to guilt-trip me into doing something.“<br/>
„I can and I will,“ she just gave back distractedly, because apparently, it was some hard work to apply mascara after downing half a bottle of red wine.<br/>
Speaking of which, Charlotte just poured a glass for Marvin.</p><p>„I don‘t like red wine,“ Marvin murmured, but that did not stop the medical student from handing him the glass.<br/>
„Do you like white wine?“<br/>
„No.“<br/>
„Beer?“<br/>
„No.“<br/>
„Champagne?“<br/>
„We‘re in college, I‘m surprised you went with red wine and not just with cheap vodka to get drunk.“<br/>
Charlotte shrugged.<br/>
„See, finance student, be thankful for what we have.“<br/>
Marvin let out a sigh and took a sip. The wine was okay-ish. At least for red wine.<br/>
„Why am I even friends with you?“<br/>
„Because I have a great taste in dating,“ Trina gave back and chuckled quietly.</p><p>Actually, Trina dated both of her friends for about a month each.<br/>
She and Marvin met in High School and started dating a few months into their freshman year. It was not really something you would consider seriously, and after a few weeks of holding hands and awkward kisses, they both decided it‘d be for the better if they could be just friends.<br/>
The break-up talk itself had been rather funny, actually.<br/>
„I‘m not quite sure if we work out as a couple,“ Marvin had said cautiously.<br/>
„Oh, thank God,“ Trina had called out relieved. Apparently, she had thought just the same.<br/>
Well, maybe not exactly the same. Marvin‘s reason for the break-up was definitely not a lie. But he waited four more years, until their freshmen year in college, to finally come clean.<br/>
He was just not into women.</p><p>Trina, being (regardless of their awkward start) one of Marvin‘s best friends, pretended like she hadn't known for the past three years.<br/>
Instead, she told him about a cute girl she met in the library and went out with a few times.<br/>
That was Charlotte. But again, there was no romantic spark. Instead of girlfriends, they became girl friends. Something Trina was just as excited about since Marvin was not exactly a big help when it came to cliche girl stuff.<br/>
The odd friend group joked about these stories occasionally, because actually, they were all glad that neither of them seemed to match Trina in an actual relationship.<br/>
Instead, they were a medical student, a biology student, and a finances student who hit it off together.</p><p>„Marvin, do you actually want to go to the club in these clothes?“ Charlotte asked as she refilled his half-emptied glass.<br/>
„I‘m alright with staying home. I mean, I really don't want to be an embarrassment for you, wearing such a hideous wardrobe. I understand. I am so glad we talked about this. Have a great night out, girls,“ Marvin saw his chance to flee.<br/>
„No way, Marv! We won‘t let you stay in on what could possibly become the best night of your life,“ Trina shook her head vehemently.<br/>
„How could tonight become the best night of my life? I don‘t even like clubbing.“<br/>
„You never went clubbing, how do you know that you don’t like it?” Charlotte asked.<br/>
”Loud music and sweaty, drunk people are not exactly what I would call a pleasant environment,” was his plain answer, but Charlotte just spilled even more wine into his glass.<br/>
”Which is why you need to become a part of the drunk majority! Cheers, to Trina, to Junior year and to Marvin finally taking a guy home!”<br/>
Marvin rolled his eyes but raised his glass, just as the giggly girls he called his closest friends.</p><p>After going back to Marvin's apartment to choose a new outfit for him (Who said Charlotte and Trina were the experts in clothing, anyway?) they wanted to take a cab to the club.<br/>
Marvin did propose to be the designated driver, but the girls would not let him.<br/>
”We’re all getting drunk tonight, whether you like it or not. And yes, that is the peer pressure your parents always warned you about,” Charlotte said, taking another big sip straight out of the wine bottle and holding it towards Marvin afterward.<br/>
Again, he did that a lot that night, he let out a sigh before taking the booze they handed him.<br/>
After a ridiculous fashion show, the girls seemed to be happy with their friend’s appearance, and the three of them could finally leave.</p><p>The club was just as Marvin imagined a night club to be: Loud and crowded. Not quite how Marvin’s ideal Friday night looked like. He admittedly regretted that he didn’t drink as much as his friends. By far, he was the soberest one of them. But that was not hard, considering that Trina and Charlotte did empty another bottle of wine together.<br/>
Maybe that was why they seemed that enthusiastic after entering the club.<br/>
Trina grabbed both of them by their hands and pulled them towards the bar.<br/>
„You want to drink <em>more</em>?“ Marvin asked, but his voice got lost in the loud music.<br/>
„I can‘t hear you! Let‘s have another drink!“ Trina yelled right into his ear, already slightly slurring her words.</p><p>The tequila Charlotte ordered for them tasted awful. It burned, it was bitter, and Marvin did not get why he had to lick salt from his hand and bite into a lemon. It didn’t really help against the taste, after all.<br/>
„Why am I doing this to me?“ Marvin mumbled, wiping his mouth, and tried to cover the aftertaste with the cola Charlotte handed him. It turned out to be cola mixed with rum, but at least it was better than this goddamn tequila.<br/>
„Because you love me!“ Trina chirped and pressed a peck onto his right cheek, „As much as a gay man can love his ex-girlfriend-now-best-friend. Let‘s go dance!“<br/>
And an overly excited Trina pulled him off the chair again and headed over to the dance floor.</p><p>How did people dance? How could they move their bodies so effortlessly and even look comfortable doing it?<br/>
It looked so easy when Charlotte began dancing to some odd remix of a pop song from four years ago. Trina looked so careless, even though she seemed to lose balance every once in a while. Geez, she really drank enough for the night.<br/>
Just to satisfy his friends, both Trina and Charlotte looked at him waiting, he started that basic-beginners-dance move. Right foot to the right, left foot to the right. Left foot to the left, right foot to the left.<br/>
„You‘re doing amazing, sweetie!“ Charlotte loudly said into his ear, „Now, we just need to find a cute guy for you to hook up with.“<br/>
„Pass,“ Marvin shook his head vehemently, „I dressed up, I came to the club with you two, I drank tequila, that‘s enough out of my comfort zone for the night.“<br/>
„Oh, come on, Marvie! What‘s the worst that could happen?“<br/>
„What are you talking about?“ Trina asked now, coming closer to listen to their conversation in the middle of the fucking club.<br/>
„Marvin doesn‘t want a Hook-Up, and I asked him what‘s the worst that could happen,“ Charlotte explained with glassy eyes.<br/>
„Herpes,“ Trina shrugged, „But Marvin, some things are worth herpes.“</p><p>„I‘m not going to make out with a random guy,“ Marvin still refused, shaking his head.<br/>
„What?“ his friends yelled back in unison, the music volume just had increased.<br/>
Marvin took a deep breath.<br/>
„I‘ll go outside to have a smoke, I‘ll be back in a few minutes!“ he managed to get out of the situation.<br/>
He knew that he could just smoke inside the club like many people around him already did. But he hoped that his friends were drunk enough to miss that.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I live for Marvin's and Trina's friendship in this fanfic. Slightly (and by that, I mean a lot) OOC, but still.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Thank you, sweetheart</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marvin just wanted to have a smoke outside. But then he decides to play the hero for some Drunk Guy.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I pre-wrote half of this in my notebook during a boring seminar. (The others were on their phones, but y'know, I'm an intellectual)<br/>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Marvin was not uncomfortable with his sexuality. Not in a cliche way. Okay, maybe a bit.<br/>
Except for Charlotte and Trina, nobody knew about it.<br/>
He did not try to keep it a secret, Marvin plainly didn’t tell anyone else. It was not like he had other friends to talk to, anyway.<br/>
He also didn’t tell his parents. After all, they probably still think he is dating Trina.<br/>
He was not ashamed of it. He just was not ready to actually tell more people about it. Saying it out loud, actually saying <em>I am gay</em>, turned out harder than he thought when he decided to tell his best friend.<br/>
Back then, when he came out to Trina, all he managed to say had been a stuttered mess consisting of the words <em>man</em>, <em>like</em> and <em>not straight</em>.<br/>
She did get the message. Of course, she did. The rest is history.</p><p>Charlotte found out herself, proving her gaydar once more.<br/>
One afternoon, several months into their friendship, she looked up from her book during a study session, stared at Marvin and said:<br/>
„Marv, are you interested in dating?“<br/>
Confused, he looked up from his book.<br/>
„Charlotte, I don’t really know how to tell you this now... last time I checked, I wasn’t a lesbian.“<br/>
„Not me, obviously,“ Charlotte rolled her eyes, „I have that guy in one of my classes, and I think you two might be a match. I can set up a date if you want me to.“<br/>
Marvins mouth went dry, his eyes went wide.<br/>
„Wait, are you straight?“ Charlotte gasped, „Oh God, Marv, I‘m sorry. My gaydar seems to be broken.“<br/>
After a few seconds of starring, Marvin started to shake his head carefully.<br/>
„No, it‘s just-“ he said slowly, the words didn’t really want to leave his mouth, „I‘m not really somebody to date, I guess. But thank you for asking.“</p><p>It was not that Marvin didn’t want a boyfriend. Actually, he even craved a relationship.<br/>
Being in love, getting all the loving attention, getting kisses and gentle touches. He was incredibly touch starved.<br/>
But he was not ready for a relationship. In their senior year of high school, he secretly dated a dude he knew from the school's theater.<br/>
Nobody, not even Trina, knew about it.<br/>
He had had this crush for months, and when the boy actually like him back, it just felt unreal.<br/>
He got incredibly jealous when his openly gay boyfriend got hit on by other guys. But Marvin himself was still closeted, so he couldn’t do anything about it. The boy kept ensuring that he didn’t want anyone else than Marvin.<br/>
But how could that even be? Who was he, to be the special one, the chosen one?<br/>
Eventually, his jealousy and own insecurities were the reason they broke up after a few short, sweet weeks.<br/>
This, and the fact Marvin refused to come out. He just wasn’t ready.</p><p>And by now, he still didn’t feel ready.</p><p>Inhaling the last drag of his cigarette, Marvin looked around.<br/>
In front of the club, some insanely drunk people did their best not to throw up. Taking any excuse he could get, he watched a man clinging onto the handrail some meters away.<br/>
The club itself was built on kind of a plateau, giving drunk folks the perfect opportunity to barf down the edge, leaning onto the cold metal of the handrail.<br/>
The man did not throw up, he just seemed incredibly drunk. Maybe he got outside to breathe something other than the thick air inside the night club.</p><p>Another man approached the drunk guy. He seemed not drunk but sketchy and started to touch Drunk Guy. His hands slid across his back and lingered on his waist.<br/>
Drunk Guy half-heartedly tried to shake him off, but lost balance and almost fell down.<br/>
Sketchy Guy caught him, by now basically pulling him into something that badly looked like a non-consensual hug.<br/>
Drunk Guy shook his head and started to wiggle himself free again, but the stranger kept pulling him close.</p><p>A sudden wave of bravery overcame Marvin, and he didn’t even really realize how he walked towards the two men.<br/>
„What‘s going on?“ Marvin asked, looking at both of them.<br/>
„My boyfriend just got really drunk, and I‘m trying to get him home,“ Sketchy Guy explained.<br/>
Drunk guy shook his head vehemently.<br/>
”Dunno hm,” he mumbled, Marvin could barely understand him. Then, Drunk Guy looked up and stared at Marvin with fear in his eyes before his head fell down again, and he seemed to start losing consciousness.<br/>
„Stop this bullshit, Babe,“ Sketchy Guy grumbled, „Come on now, I‘m taking you home.“<br/>
„Woah, stop there, Dude,“ Marvin brought out with more confidence he ever had in his entire life, taking a step closer to them, „I‘m not quite sure if I believe you.“<br/>
„That‘s not my problem, jackass,“ the stranger shrugged, tightening the grip around Drunk Guy‘s waist again.<br/>
Drunk Guy whined quietly.<br/>
„Okay, cut this bullshit right now,“ Marvin finally said, now physically stepping in. Within two steps, he stood next to the two men to try loosening the stranger's grip around Drunk Guy's waist.<br/>
„Don‘t fucking touch me, asshole,“ the stranger grumbled, „Leave us alone.“</p><p>„Help me,“ Drunk Guy breathed. Marvin wouldn’t have heard him if he didn’t stand right next to him.<br/>
„Listen, fucker, leave this poor bastard alone,“ Marvin said, stepping closer towards Sketchy Guy, trying to look as dangerous as he could.<br/>
His resting bitch face might have helped because it was safe to say that it was not his appearance that caused the stranger to loosen the grip around the tall man.<br/>
Maybe he realized that Marvin wouldn’t let him leave with poor Drunk Guy, or he just found it wasn‘t worth the effort.<br/>
With a huff, the stranger let go of Drunk Guy, who promptly lost balance and fell against Marvin instead.</p><p>The man was one head taller and much stronger than Marvin. The short man („I am not short, I am of average height!“) almost collapsed under the sudden weight on his side.<br/>
Sketchy Guy was far away by now, but Marvin now had this giant of a man clinging onto him like he was his last chance to survive.</p><p>„Thank‘ou,“ he mumbled, swaying uncontrolled when Marvin finally got him to stand again, just supporting his stand with a hand on his back, „That guy was hhell‘of a creep.“<br/>
„No problem,“ Marvin wheezed when the giant once again fell against him, „You should go home, you don’t seem like you should be around here anymore.“<br/>
The giant nodded eagerly, but then stopped mid-motion.<br/>
„But firs‘,“ he mumbled, sprinted (or wavered) to the handrail, and finally barfed down.</p><p>„Throwing up makes you sober up quicker,“ Marvin noted awkwardly, not really sure how to act.<br/>
Drunk Guy raised his head again, still looking rather pale.<br/>
„Do you have a paper towel or something?“ he asked weakly, glaring at Marvin with glassy eyes.<br/>
Slowly, Marvin nodded, but then he remembered that Trina had their belongings in her purse inside the club.<br/>
„I have to get my stuff, and then I will help to get you home, alright?“ the smaller man proposed, „Stay right here, okay?“<br/>
„You are so nice,“ Drunk Guy gave back and wanted to pull Marvin into something that seemed to be a bone-crushing hug, but Marvin took a step back.<br/>
„No problem, man,“ He mumbled, „Just... don‘t move, okay?“</p><p>Drunk Guy nodded. When Marvin turned around, he heard him throwing up again.</p><p>He found his friends on the dance floor. First, he spotted Charlotte, dancing with some blonde girl he didn’t know. Trina was standing a few feet away, swaying to the beat.<br/>
„Can you give me my stuff?“ Marvin yelled at her, „I got to supervise some drunk guy.“<br/>
„What?“ Trina asked over the music.<br/>
„Can you give me my stuff?“ he asked again, pointing at the purse in Trina‘s hands.<br/>
She nodded eagerly and stretched out her hands to pass it over to him.<br/>
A few moments later, Marvin had back his phone, moneybag, and a pack of tissues.<br/>
„Thanks,“ he then said, handing the purse back to its owner, „Listen, I have to take care of some helpless guy I found outside. Sorry, Trin. See you tomorrow?“<br/>
„See you later, Marv!“ Trina chirped, obviously not having understood.<br/>
Fine, Marvin would just text her from the cab.<br/>
Before heading towards the exit, he actually planned on saying goodbye to Charlotte as well, but she seemed rather busy with making out with the blonde girl.</p><p>Jeez, what a night.</p><p>Outside again, Drunk Guy still clung onto the handrail, but he did seem less sick.<br/>
„Thank you, sweetheart,“ he mumbled when Marvin gave him a paper towel.<br/>
Marvin just remained silent and looked away politely as Drunk Guy wiped his face with the tissue.<br/>
„Can‘ou help me with the cab?“ he begged. He appeared so helpless, the wrinkled paper towel in his hand, still holding onto the handrail for balance.<br/>
Marvin took a deep breath.<br/>
„Yeah, sure. You don’t really seem like you‘d survive without help right now.“<br/>
„Thank‘ou, asshole,“ the taller man muttered, but let go of the handrail and now held onto Marvin once again.<br/>
Wheezing under the sudden weight, Marvin had to take a moment to maintain his balance.</p><p>Somehow, they managed to get down the stairs and to the street, where several taxis were already waiting for drunk passengers from the night club.<br/>
Getting Drunk Guy (should Marvin ask for his name?) into the taxi was harder than he thought it‘d be. Because he was bigger and heavier than Marvin, but also because he basically clung onto him like a sloth onto his mother.<br/>
When he finally sat (or laid) in the back of the car, Marvin thought the whole thing would be done, and he could head back to his place. But only ten seconds after closing the door, he heard the driver yell after him.<br/>
„Your pal passed out, what‘s the address?“</p><p>Tiredly, Marvin rubbed his hand over his face.<br/>
„Alright then,“ he mumbled, turning around and getting into the cab within one quick motion.<br/>
The taxi driver just nodded when Marvin told him his own address.<br/>
Drunk Guy leaned his head on his shoulder and continued his sleep.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Can’t you get your mind straight?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Whizzer wakes up in an unknown bed, but for some odd reason, the guy in the kitchen isn't even remotely attracted to him.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Whizzer awoke in an unknown bed. Not that he wasn’t used to that. But he didn’t quite remember how he got there.<br/>
His date from last night, therefore, did not seem to be much of a cuddly person. The place next to him in the bed was empty.<br/>
Whizzer sat up and stretched. The sudden movement made everything start to twist again, that was when he realized he had not sobered out yet.<br/>
So he got out of bed: still drunk, dozy and only wearing his boxers. His clothes were on the floor right next to the bed, he would just put them on later. It wasn’t like he had any problems with nudity.</p><p>„Jesus Christ, put on some clothes.“<br/>
But apparently, his date had.</p><p>„Chill, dude, you literally boned me last night, don‘t be bothered by my breathtaking body now.“<br/>
The guy sat on the kitchen table, stirring his tea and starred at Whizzer. Then he laughed loudly and sarcastically.<br/>
„I let you sleep in my bed because I was pitying you. I slept on the couch. I promised to help you at the club yesterday after you got so wasted you vomited out your entire digestive system.“<br/>
Whizzer stopped for a moment, trying to remember the last night.<br/>
Then he came to a simple conclusion:<br/>
He couldn’t.</p><p>„I really don’t want to be unfriendly or something, but since I let you sleep in my apartment instead of abandoning you helplessly on the streets of New York, could you please put on some clothes now?“<br/>
The man's voice dripped in sarcasm. Not about the dressing up part, he seemed deadly serious about that, but about the being unfriendly part.<br/>
„Fine. I don’t really understand why you wouldn’t want to see this,“ Whizzer did a little twirl, „But your wish is my command.“<br/>
With these words, he left the kitchen again, walking back into the bedroom.</p><p>His dress shirt was wrinkled as hell, thanks to being on the bedroom floor all night long. It also smelled.<br/>
And the worst thing Whizzer could have ever imagined: There was a stain on it. He threw the shirt on the floor again.<br/>
His pants seemed to be alright.<br/>
„Do you have a plastic bag or something?“ Whizzer asked, entering the kitchen again, now only half-naked.<br/>
„Because of the huge stain on your shirt?“ the man asked, slightly smirking and stood up from the table to open the cupboard.<br/>
„You knew about that? Bastard,“ Whizzer mumbled, taking the bag the guy handed him.<br/>
„Oh, complain to someone else. I took care of you last night, you better be fucking grateful for that.“</p><p>Whizzer chose not to answer and went back into the bedroom once again.<br/>
Carefully, not to touch the stain, he put his shirt (This one had been his favorite!) into the plastic bag.<br/>
He was still topless, which he noticed when a slight shiver went over the place in between his shoulder blades.</p><p>„Dear God, you can‘t just-“<br/>
„Can‘t you get your mind straight? I am not allowed to walk around naked, but if I put on a sweater, it‘s wrong as well?“<br/>
„I did not mean that you can put on my clothes, shitface.“</p><p>Whizzer sat down at the dining table.<br/>
„I was feeling chilly. Calm down, I‘ll wash it and bring it back.“<br/>
„I‘ll never take care of drunk strangers again,“ The guy opposite him grumbled, taking a sip from his tea, „Talking about strangers, I don’t even know your name. I let you sleep in my bed even though I don’t even know your name. That‘s how nice I am.“<br/>
„If you think, not knowing the name of the guy that wakes up in your bed, means that you‘re a nice person, I might need to teach you one or two things about life,“ The taller man said, „I‘m Whizzer.“</p><p>„What kind of name is that?“<br/>
Whizzer rolled his eyes.<br/>
„Never heard that comment before. You’re so innovative, Guy, who didn’t tell me his name yet.“<br/>
„Marvin. I‘m Marvin.“</p><p>Whizzer nodded slightly, looking around in the kitchen.<br/>
„Hey Marvin, do you maybe have some coffee for me?“ He then asked, while he watched Marvin drink his tea.<br/>
But he shook his head.<br/>
„Not much of a coffee drinker. You can have black or herbal tea,“ The shorter man just responded.<br/>
„Ew. Fine, black.“<br/>
They fell silent, while Marvin filled up the kettle.<br/>
Whizzer knew that he should leave and call Cordelia and Mendel, at least to let them know that he is still alive.<br/>
And he would definitely do that, but right now Whizzer pretty much enjoyed annoying the dude in this kitchen.</p><p>„Wait, did I remove my makeup yesterday?“ Whizzer suddenly remembered and wiped his hand over his face to check.<br/>
„Yes, you did. You asked me for makeup-wipes,“ Marvin just responded dryly.<br/>
„But you had none?“<br/>
„Yes I did, you‘re lucky, I only have girls as friends.“<br/>
The man down put a mug filled with tea in front of Whizzer.<br/>
„Makeup-wipes in your bathroom? Sounds not very straight to me,“ Whizzer mumbled into the tea mug as he took the first sip and promptly burned his tongue.<br/>
„What?“<br/>
„I just said, I'm proud of Drunk Whizzer for removing his makeup. Bad Bitch Energy,“ Whizzer then said instead.<br/>
„Well, I removed it. You wouldn't stop begging.“<br/>
Whizzer shrugged.<br/>
„Still. He remembered it. Bad Bitch Energy.“</p><p>„Said <em>Bad Bitch</em> almost got kidnapped yesterday,“ Marvin gave back, „So maybe you shouldn’t drink that much next time.“<br/>
„Marvin, you can‘t just hint at things when I literally don‘t remember one single thing.“<br/>
The other man shrugged.<br/>
„Some asshole wanted to take advantage of you while you were outside the club. You did not seem to enjoy it.“</p><p>Whizzer nodded and took another sip of the awful tea.<br/>
Maybe he shouldn’t have gone outside all alone, or shouldn’t have gotten that drunk in the first place. If what Marvin told him was true, it <em>had been</em> a dangerous situation.<br/>
„Why did you help me?“</p><p>Again, Marvin shrugged.<br/>
„I was outside to smoke. And I didn’t want to go back inside again anyways,“ He clarified, „Also, you begged me to help you. Would have been kind of a dick move to leave you alone.<br/>
Oh, and you fell asleep before telling the cab driver your address, so I let him drive us here. You drooled on my shirt while we were driving.“</p><p>„At least you have only drool on your shirt instead of vomit,“ Whizzer muttered.<br/>
„Is that my fault, though?“ Marvin put his emptied mug into the sink, „Also, don’t you have places to go or something?“<br/>
„You want to get rid of me?“ Whizzer raised his eyebrows.<br/>
„Shouldn’t you be used to guys throwing you out of their apartment in the morning?“</p><p>That Marvin Guy was kind of mean.<br/>
„Are you calling me a whore? Because you are totally right, no shame. I‘m embracing the single life,“ Whizzer gave back and stood up.<br/>
Marvin ignored his comment.<br/>
„The door is over there. Watch out, so you don’t get kidnapped this time.“</p><p>But because he was a smooth fucker, Whizzer just had to take the pen that laid next to the newspaper on the table. (Whizzer had the feeling, Marvin was actually one of those guys who did crossword puzzles.)<br/>
Quickly, he scribbled down his phone number.<br/>
„In case you ever want me in your bed again,“ He then winked, „Just text.“<br/>
Marvin rolled his eyes.<br/>
„Noted. Bye.“</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Whizzer is the kind of king who would only go clubbing with some concealer on and a perfect contour. Because I said so.</p><p>(Inspired by me, who woke up after <em>the night</em> and panicked if they removed their makeup. (For the record, I did. I had never been so proud of myself.) )</p><p>I'd love to read some opinions on this story, so if you have one or two seconds to spare, the comment section is right below! :D</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. If I was a lesbian I’d be attracted to you, too!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Neither Whizzer nor Cordelia remember the last night. Good thing, that Mendel made a list.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I suck at chapter titles.</p><p>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Whizzer didn’t have a jacket with him. A slight shiver went down his spine.<br/>
Marvin’s sweater helped, though. He was definitely not getting that one back.<br/>
His phone and his dorm keys were in the pockets of his pants. He had several missed calls from both Cordelia and Mendel, and numerous texts. Most of them were as drunk as concerned.<br/>
Without hesitation, he pressed the <em>call</em> button next to Cordelia’s name,<br/>
It was not Cordelia but Mendel who answered the phone.<br/>
„Thank god Whizzer, where were you? We were worried sick!“<br/>
Whizzer chuckled.</p><p>„Good morning Dad, why do you have Delia’s phone and why are you whispering?“<br/>
„Delia is hungover. I stayed over at her apartment, she could barely walk by herself yesterday.“<br/>
„I can hear you!“ Delia’s muffled voice came through the speaker.<br/>
„I’ll be there in a minute. Do you remember what the heck happened yesterday?“ Whizzer asked as he crossed the street.<br/>
„Most of it. Text me when you’re here, I don’t think Deli can bear the doorbell.“<br/>
„Alright. See you in ten.“<br/>
Whizzer’s phone was down to 10% anyways.</p><p>The door was opened by Mendel since Cordelia sat on her sofa and didn’t move out of fear to throw up if she did.<br/>
„I think I speak for all of us if I say that we should never drink that much again,“ The psychiatry major proposed, keeping his voice volume down to a minimum.<br/>
„I think I speak for all of us if I say that our ‚never‘ will last for about 3 weekends,“ Whizzer just gave back and let himself fall next to Delia. „Good morning, sweetheart, did you get a good night sleep?“<br/>
„Fuck you,“ the blonde mumbled, „Was the guy you went home with good? Because we were worried as shit.<br/>
I mean, Mendel told me that we were. I can’t remember anything.“<br/>
„Hey, same!“<br/>
Cordelia winced under Whizzer’s cheer.</p><p>„Mendel, mind to tell us what the heck happened yesterday?“ the photography student looked at his friend.<br/>
He cracked his fingers and pulled out his phone.<br/>
„I was just waiting for you to arrive. Good thing that I made a list.“<br/>
Whizzer and Cordelia both listened to their curly-haired friend as he started to read out the most interesting events of the last night.</p><p>„First we got drunk in Delia’s apartment. You still remember that, right?“<br/>
He looked at the empty bottles of booze on the living room table.<br/>
The others nodded.<br/>
„Okay, then we took another bottle of wine with us. We took a taxi, you two sat in the back and drank the wine, I paid the driver.“<br/>
„Is that a polite way to say we owe you money?“ Whizzer teased.<br/>
„Yes, it is,“ Mendel gave back without looking up from the phone screen, „When we arrived, we went to the bar to have more drinks. I didn’t drink for the rest of the night, because I decided to be the responsible one.“</p><p>„Thank you for pointing that out, Mendel,“ Delia mumbled, burying her face in a pillow.<br/>
„Wait, did I <em>pay</em> for drinks?“ Whizzer now wanted to know, „Because that would have been sad. I demand to get invited for drinks or I don’t drink.“<br/>
„You didn’t get invited, but you wanted to get more drunk. But Cordelia got invited!“<br/>
Mendel started to grin.<br/>
„I did?!“ The blonde looked up from the pillow and stared surprised into the man’s face, „Was she cute?“<br/>
„She was. I’ll get back to that later.“<br/>
Mendel chuckled a bit.</p><p>„You go, girl!“ Whizzer wanted to give Delia a High Five but she just winced at the loud sound of his voice again.<br/>
„How come you’re not hungover?“ She asked instead, glaring at the photography major.<br/>
„Bold of you to assume I’m already sober, babe,“ He just gave back, then turning his head back to Mendel.<br/>
„Go on, Mend.“<br/>
„When we wanted to go dancing, you, Whizzer, apologized yourself to go outside and get some fresh air. That would mark the last time we saw you.“</p><p>Whizzer nodded.<br/>
„I went outside to throw up.“<br/>
„Jesus Christ, how are you still drunk?“<br/>
The taller man shrugged.<br/>
„And <em>after that</em>, you <em>still</em> got someone to screw?“ Cordelia asked, „That guy must have been horny.“<br/>
„Okay, first of all: I’m a literal jackpot, no matter if I barfed or not,“ Whizzer clarified, „And secondly, that’s not exactly how it went down.“<br/>
„I thought you don’t remember anything?“ Mendel pointed out, „How do you know what happened?“</p><p>„The guy I went home with told me.“<br/>
„So you did go home with a guy?“<br/>
„Yeah, but... Okay, let me tell from the start:<br/>
Apparently, some guy walked up to me and harassed me. And another guy saw that and kinda helped me to get out of that situation.<br/>
... Then I threw up.“<br/>
„Lovely. Nice guy, though,“ Mendel commented.<br/>
„I don’t know, he seemed like kind of a dick this morning,“ Whizzer shrugged.</p><p>„So you <em>did</em> sleep with him after that? Whizzer, I’m too hungover to think properly. What happened then?“ Delia wanted to know.<br/>
„Okay, so: He sat me in a taxi to get home, but I fell asleep before telling the driver my address. That, and because the guy didn’t want to go back inside anyways, is the reason why he drove us to <em>his</em> apartment.<br/>
He helped me to remove my makeup, put me to bed and slept on the couch.<br/>
Out of pity, as he claimed.“<br/>
„Did you get his number? If he helps you to remove your makeup, he’s a keeper. Oh my god, did I tell you how amazing your contour looked yesterday?“ Delia asked.<br/>
„You told him on the way to the club, about 300 times. The taxi driver started mocking you,“ Mendel answered that question.</p><p>„No, I didn’t get his number. But I left him mine. He’ll probably text me when he wants his sweater back.“<br/>
„Why are you wearing his sweater after all?“ Mendel wanted to know.<br/>
„I have vomit on my shirt.“<br/>
„Charming.“<br/>
„Did he look good?“ Delia asked then, „I mean, it would be a nice story to tell the grandchildren.“<br/>
„‚I met your grandpa in a night club because he saved me from some asshole, and then I threw up and let him take me home. So, keep drinking alcohol and you might find the love of your life!‘“ Mendel imitated the voice of an old man.</p><p>„I don’t do relationships. I enjoy screwing around way too much,“ Whizzer defended himself, „I also told him that. Just in case he is getting his hopes up.“<br/>
„Sometimes I wish I had your self-confidence,“ Mendel said.<br/>
„It‘s not always easy. You know, sometimes I forget that I am, in fact, not Mister Universe, even though I <em>do</em> deserve it,“ Whizzer responded plainly, nodding sadly.<br/>
„Your life sounds so hard. Sometimes I cry when I look at myself in the mirror without a binder on.“<br/>
„Okay guys, Whizzer obviously got the self-confidence God intended for Mendel. But Whizz, was the guy hot?“ Cordelia repeated her question.<br/>
„Upper average, I‘d say.“<br/>
„Gay?“<br/>
Whizzer laughed.<br/>
„Absolutely. My Gaydar was like on a solid 12.“</p><p>„So, in conclusion,“ Mendel now said, „A guy saved you from some asshole who wanted to take advantage of you, then took you home, helped you remove your makeup, brought you to bed, slept on the couch <em>in his own home</em>, and the next morning you took his sweater. And he <em>went along with it</em>?!“<br/>
„To be fair, he was kind of an asshole. He called me a whore,“ Whizzer pointed out.<br/>
„Whizz, we love you, but you <em>are</em>.“<br/>
„Delia, that’s not the point.“<br/>
„I’m actually pretty sure he was attracted to you,“ Delia noted, „I mean, why wouldn’t he. If I was a gay man, I’d probably be attracted to you, too.“<br/>
„Aw, Babe, that’s so sweet!“ Whizzer grinned, „If I was a lesbian I’d be attracted to you, too!“<br/>
„As the awkward pansexual I actually am, I will just not comment on any of this and instead tell you about the rest of the night?“ Mendel proposed now.</p><p>„The night <em>went on</em>?“ Delia asked confused, „Didn’t we look for Whizzer?“<br/>
„Well, <em>I</em> did. You were busy making out with the girl who bought you a drink earlier the night.“<br/>
„Oh my God!“ Whizzer called out, „Go, Delia!“<br/>
„Babe, I love you but if you keep yelling I will cut your throat,“ Delia glared at him with a death stare.<br/>
It was hard to take her seriously with her high voice and sweet face, also taking the fact that Cordelia didn’t even kill mosquitoes.<br/>
„Sorry. But Mendel, she did make out with a girl she <em>just met</em>?“<br/>
„I was so drunk,“ the woman whined, „I can’t even remember it.“</p><p>„Well, after I called Whizzer a few times and he didn’t pick up, we decided to leave. You came up to me, told me that the girl, you called her Charlotte, had to go look for her friend, who was called something with M.<br/>
Being the responsible friend I am, I stayed over tonight, because I know how melancholic you tend to get when you drink.“<br/>
„Is it just me or is Mendel just stressing how irresponsible we are?“ Whizzer pointed out.<br/>
„You guys really were <em>incredibly</em> irresponsible. You, Whizzer, almost got kidnapped, and you, Delia, well you got to make out with a cute girl, but that’s not the point,“ Mendel shook his head, „Look, guys, I really love you two, so I am just worried about your well-being. So please just- don’t drink that much next time, okay?“</p><p>The gays both nodded at their friend.<br/>
„Thank you. Now I will head back to my dormitory, because at this point I have been binding for way longer than is healthy, and my rib cage is basically on fire.“<br/>
„Why didn’t you sleep without the binder? You really shouldn’t have it on that long, sweety,“ Cordelia looked at her friend with concern.<br/>
„Well, you should not drink so much that you don’t remember anything the next day, so let’s just settle with ‚we all make mistakes every now and then‘.“</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>There is no such thing as overuse of italics.<br/>Also, I adore writing Mendel.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. An adorable love story</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Everyone (except for Marvin) is having a crisis.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Shortly after throwing out Drunk Guy (what a cocky person), Marvin received a call by Trina.</p><p>„I’m mad at you for leaving early,“ she greeted him, „But that’s not the point.“<br/>
„Good morning to you, too,“ Marvin replied, „What’s the matter?“<br/>
„Charlotte just texted me, she is freaking out about something, she wants us to come over.“<br/>
Marvin looked at the clock that hung in the kitchen. He would need about 20 minutes to drive to campus.<br/>
„I can be there at 11:15. See you there?“</p><p>„Yeah, sure,“ Trina mumbled, „Oh, can you bring my purse?“<br/>
„What purse?“ Marvin asked confused.<br/>
„My purse, remember? I gave it to you when you wanted to leave. After 20 minutes. Remember?“<br/>
Trina sounded not amused. In fact, her mood was incredibly un-Trina-like.<br/>
„I’m sorry to disappoint you, I gave you your bag before I left,“ Marvin said, furrowing his brows.<br/>
„You did?“ Trina asked surprised, „Shit. Alright, see you later.“<br/>
Then, the line went dead.</p><p>Marvin raised himself from the kitchen table. He glanced at the scribbled numbers on the newspaper. How self-assertive could a single human be? Why would he possibly think, Marvin would have <em>any</em> interest in him <em>at all</em>?<br/>
Just because Whizzer was another pretty boy?<br/>
How did he dare to assume that Marvin was gay, anyway? (Not that it wasn’t true, but... still!)<br/>
Without much further thinking, Marvin threw the newspaper away and set off to the dormitories.</p><p>„I’m freaking out.“<br/>
That’s how Charlotte opened the door. Her hair was uncombed and messy.<br/>
„Jesus Christ, did you just fall out of bed?“ Marvin greeted his friend.<br/>
„Aren’t you charming today? Come in, I’m still waiting for Trina.“</p><p>„Her room is literally down the aisle, what’s taking her so long?“ Marvin questioned.<br/>
„She texted me she’d be still searching for something in her room,“ the woman explained and stepped aside to let him into the room, „You lasted about 10 minutes yesterday, didn’t you?“<br/>
„20 minutes,“ Marvin said defensively and crossed his arms, „There was an emergency.“<br/>
„I hope the emergency was good-looking because that’s the only excuse I accept.“<br/>
„Charles...“ Marvin mumbled and sat down on the couch. Luckily, he didn’t have to go into the topic, since another knock on the door announced Trina.</p><p>„I lost my purse.“<br/>
That was her greeting.<br/>
„Can anybody tell me what happened to <em>Good morning, how are you?</em>?“<br/>
„Marvin, right now you are literally the only one who is not in a crisis, so stop being a pain in the ass,“ Charlotte snapped.<br/>
„Alright, you both calm down now and explain what happened,“ The man proposed, „I’m sure it’s not as awful as you think it is. So, Trin, you lost your purse?“</p><p>The biology major nodded.<br/>
„I’m freaking out. My ID and my credit cards were in there. You’re lucky that you took your stuff out earlier and that Charles had her ID in her pocket. I’m just glad I left my phone in my dorm room.<br/>
My roommate had to let me in at night, she was <em>not</em> happy about it.<br/>
I forgot some bits of the night. Guys, let’s never do that again.“</p><p>Both Marvin and Charlotte listened patiently.<br/>
„Alright. So that means, today we will drive to the club again to ask if they saw your purse,“ Marvin proposed.<br/>
„Do you think that’ll work?“ Trina asked him with hope in her eyes.<br/>
„Of course!“ he lied. This was New York, her bag was as good as gone.</p><p>Trina nodded and then took a deep breath.<br/>
„Still, let’s never do that again. I did some very embarrassing things. And I don’t remember some parts of the night, so I’m not quite sure what else I did.“<br/>
„Do you remember Charlotte making out with that girl?“ Marvin chuckled and looked at the woman, that was still standing in the middle of the room.</p><p>„<em>That</em> is why I‘m freaking out!“ She said and let herself fall on her bed, „That girl? She goes to this college. I had a crush on her since freshman year! And then I just... Threw me at her!“<br/>
„That’s the thing you are freaking out about?“ Marvin said, „Hell, Charles, I’m pretty sure she didn’t mind. Didn’t look exactly like she was trying to push you away.“<br/>
Charlotte shrugged and let out a sigh.<br/>
„I mean, she was really drunk. We both were. And maybe she doesn’t even remember. Dear God, I hope she doesn’t remember.“<br/>
„So you won't try to talk to her after you two basically ate each other’s faces off?“ the finances major now asked.</p><p>„How do you even know that? Didn’t you leave after like 5 minutes?“ the medical student looked up.<br/>
„20 Minutes!“ Marvin tried to defend himself.<br/>
„Why did you leave, anyway? I thought you just wanted to have a smoke. Which you could have done inside, by the way, people <em>do</em> smoke inside night clubs,“ Trina now pressed him.<br/>
„I had a smoke, but outside there was this guy, who-“ He began but Charlotte interrupted him.<br/>
„Did Marvin actually hook-up with some guy from the night club?!“<br/>
„I didn’t!“ Marvin clarified quickly, „I helped the drunk idiot not to get molested! And I had pity when he vomited over the handrail. So I helped to get him home.“</p><p>He decided that they didn’t have to know that Whizzer spent the night in his bed. It’s not like they’d ever find out the truth.<br/>
Besides, it was really out of character by Marvin to let some drunk guy stay over at his house just out of pity.<br/>
„When did you start to be nice to people?“ Trina asked, „Was he good looking?“<br/>
„What? No, I didn’t help him just because he was attractive!“<br/>
„So he was!“ Charlotte called out.<br/>
„I was just being <em>nice</em>. You had to see the guy. He couldn’t even walk without help. I mean, I’ll never see him again, anyways.“<br/>
„That sounds like the end of an adorable love story,“ Trina said and got up from the sofa, „Let’s go find my bag?“</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>The living example that it is possible to write 7k words about a night out and its aftermath. Things will start to get interesting in the next chapter, so stay tuned!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. thegirlcordeliamadeoutwith</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Mendel is a dork, Charles is about to freak out again and Delia is brave.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Whizzer was on his bed, throwing a baseball up in the air and catching it again. Delia sat on his desk chair, bitching about some girl in her last class. Occasionally, Whizzer would nod or make noises of agreement.<br/>
That was when Mendel stormed in, breathing heavily as if he just ran two miles in four minutes.<br/>
He slammed the door behind him, trying to normalize his breathing, which did not work at all.<br/>
„Are you okay, sweety?“ Cordelia asked, watching the psychiatry major as he tried to catch his breath.<br/>
„I-“ He gasped, „I gotta lie down.“<br/>
He basically collapsed on the bed next to Whizzer.</p><p>„Y‘know, most men buy me a drink before we end up in bed together,“ Whizzer just commented but moved over for his friend, „Are you okay, dude?“<br/>
„Isawthegirlcordeliamadeoutwith,“ He just wheezed in one go and took another deep breath right after that.<br/>
„You what?“ Cordelia asked, „Honey, breathe and tell us again.“<br/>
„I“, now he tried to empathize every word, „Saw. The girl. Cordelia. Made out. With.“<br/>
„You did?! Where is she?“ Delia squealed.<br/>
„She just walked past me in the hallway. In the medical building.“<br/>
„Cordelia snuggled with a soon-to-be doctor!“ Whizzer teased the Blonde, who started blushing.<br/>
„Mendel, isn’t the medial building on the other side of campus?“ She asked instead.<br/>
„Yeah. That’s why I ran. I also have class there, in,“ The curly-haired male looked on his watch, „20 minutes.“<br/>
Then, he groaned, putting his arms over his face.</p><p>„So you came here, running, because you had the desperate need to share this piece of information with us, and now you will just head back there?“ Whizzer clarified and looked at Mendel, who nodded slightly.<br/>
„Not my proudest moment. But that’s what you love me for,“ He got up (Whizzer made himself comfortable again) and stretched, „I’ll head back. Walking. Rather crawling. See you guys for dinner?“<br/>
„See you,“ Delia and Whizzer both said, looking after Mendel leaving the room again.</p><p>„You’d like to see her, wouldn’t you?“ Whizzer grinned at his best girl friend.<br/>
„I’d at least like to know how she looks like,“ Delia said, blushing again, „Can you believe it? That girl actually goes to this college? Like, what kind of coincidence is that?“<br/>
„Jesus Christ, imagine Marvin going here as well,“ Whizzer chuckled, „He’d probably study something incredibly boring. Like literature or law.“<br/>
„Who’s Marvin?“<br/>
„The guy who I didn’t sleep with.“<br/>
Whizzer forgot he didn’t even tell them his name.<br/>
„I think it’s ironic, you remember his name, but can’t memorize the names of your fuck-dates for two hours,“ Cordelia teased.<br/>
„It’s so sweet of you that you actually think, I’m interested in knowing the names of my one night stands,“ Whizzer gave back casually and changed the topic.</p><p>They bitched about people from their classes for another hour, until they both got a notification in their group chat.</p><p><strong>Mend💡:</strong> Delia<br/>
<strong>Mend💡:</strong> I’m on the courtyard<br/>
<strong>Mend💡:</strong> So is that girl<br/>
<strong>Mend💡:</strong> But she is with some guy friend of hers<br/>
<strong>Mend💡:</strong> So move over here asap</p><p>Whizzer grinned.<br/>
„I’d love to be there for this amazing reunion, but sadly I have class, which means I’ll cancel our friendship if you won’t give me all the tea later,“ He stated.<br/>
„God, Whizz‘, do you even <em>know</em> me?“ Cordelia just gave back, took her bag and went out of the door.</p>
<hr/><p>Marvin was telling Charlotte some really interesting anecdote from one of his last classes, but she did not seem to listen. Instead, she just stared into the void, nodding once in a while.<br/>
They both sat on a bench, waiting for Trina to join them after her class.<br/>
Suddenly, she seemed to see something a few meters away and her whole body went tense.<br/>
„Are you alright?“ Marvin asked, following her gaze.<br/>
She stared at the blonde girl she made out with at the night club, she stood together with a guy, whispering furiously.<br/>
„That’s her,“ Charles gasped, „She just looked over here! Why did she look over here? Marvin, why would she...“<br/>
„Maybe, just maybe, because she is interested?“ Marvin proposed.<br/>
„What? Marvin that’s ridiculous,“ Charlotte snapped, „How- Oh my God she is coming over. She is heading straight over here, she is...“<br/>
Charlotte’s voice went quieter the closer the pretty girl came.<br/>
When she and her friend stopped right at their very bench, Charlotte went completely silent.</p><p>„Hi!“ The Blonde chirped, „I’m Cordelia.“<br/>
„Charlotte,“ The medical student babbled and held her hand out for the other girl to shake it.<br/>
They did seem to forget to let go of each other’s hands and just continued to stare into each other’s faces.<br/>
„Well, this is awkward,“ Marvin said after a few moments of silence.<br/>
The blonde girl, Cordelia was her name, blushed a bit and pulled her hand away.<br/>
„Well, uhm. I’ll be completely honest, I forgot basically everything that happened Friday night,“ She pointed at the guy next to her, „If it wasn’t for Mendel, who told me on Saturday morning, I’d have no clue what happened.“<br/>
Charlotte laughed slightly embarrassed and shrugged.<br/>
„Oh, don’t worry, we don’t need to dig further into it, I mean we were both drunk-“ She started to flee the whole situation, but got interrupted.<br/>
„Actually, I wanted to ask you to coffee,“ The Blonde blurted out.</p><p>Charles blinked two times, looking at her crush silently.<br/>
„Sure!“ She then said with an overexcited voice, nodding eagerly, „Uhh, when are you free?“<br/>
Cordelia’s face lit up and she pulled out her phone, „Maybe I’ll text you about the details?“<br/>
She gave her phone to the medical student, who typed in her number. Marvin swore, her hands were shaking.</p><p>„‚That's ridiculous, why is she coming over here‘,“ Marvin imitated Charlotte when Cordelia and Mendel (that was his name, right?) walked away.<br/>
„Shut up.“<br/>
She didn’t even try to hide her smile.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I cannot stress enough how much I adore Mendel.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Introducing your girlfriend to your parents</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Delia invites everyone over for dinner. Marvin regrettes every decision he ever made.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>The last one was pretty short, I know, but this one is a little longer!<br/>Enjoy! :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Delia and that girl have been dating for about two weeks now. <em>Dating</em> meant that they went out regularly for coffee, lunch, dinner, one time they met before class and went out for breakfast.<br/>
And after every date, Cordelia would talk about Charlotte for hours. Whizzer and Mendel didn’t say anything against it, they actually both loved seeing their friend that happily in love.</p>
<p>„When will you finally start calling her your girlfriend?“ Whizzer asked one day.<br/>
The three of them had met up in a cafe on campus during their free period.<br/>
„Actually, that’s what I wanted to talk to you two about. I’d like you two, as my closest friends, to meet her before I can take the next step. And actually, she wants me to meet her friends too, so I think that might be a nice idea?“<br/>
Delia stirred her chocolate mocha and looked at both her friends shyly.</p>
<p>Whizzer leaned over to Mendel.<br/>
„Is it just me or does this feel like <em>introducing your girlfriend to your parents</em>?“<br/>
„It totally does,“ Mendel nodded, „When did we marry and raise a lesbian?“<br/>
„I think it all started in freshman year...“ Whizzer began but got interrupted by Delia.<br/>
„Guys! It’s really important to me! Please?“ she looked at both of them with pleading eyes, „I invited her and her friends over for dinner on Friday night. So, are you guys free?“</p>
<p>The men looked at each other.<br/>
„How could we say no to our beloved daughter?“</p>
<hr/>
<p>After Marvin picked up both Charlotte and Trina at their dormitories, the three of them sat in Marvin’s small car, heading to the apartment of the Blonde that Charlotte could not shut up about.<br/>
The latter sat on the passenger seat, giving Marvin driving instructions and shifting around occasionally.<br/>
„Tonight is really important to me, you know that right?“ she ensured herself again.<br/>
„Yes, for the 80th time. We know. Don’t worry, Charles, we’re all grownups,“ Trina tried to comfort her friend from the backseat.<br/>
The medical student just nodded and looked out of the window, still not seeming very convinced.</p>
<p>„You really like her, do you?“ Marvin asked, quickly looking at his friend before turning his head back to the front.<br/>
„Well, yeah. I asked her to be my girlfriend. And she said she’d love to, but first, she wants to have this dinner. Her friends are really important to her. I mean, you guys are important to me, too, and I’m glad that you get to meet her now because she is just <em>so</em> amazing-“<br/>
„She’s stuck in her Cordelia-is-amazing-spiral again,“ Trina whispered, which made Marvin chuckle.</p>
<p>Cordelia turned out to be a sweet girl. Not that Charlotte didn’t tell them that, already.<br/>
She opened the door, still wearing her apron and welcomed the three of them inside.<br/>
„I’m Cordelia,“ she introduced herself politely and smiled brightly.<br/>
„We figured. Charles doesn’t ever stop talking about you,“ Marvin said and shook her outstretched hand, „I’m Marvin.“<br/>
Cordelia tilted her head slightly as if his name brought up some kind of deeply buried memory.<br/>
„So, Marvin...“ She nodded, „So what do you major in?“<br/>
„Finances, why do you ask?“<br/>
Cordelia nodded again.<br/>
„Isn’t it kind of boring sometimes?“<br/>
Charlotte nudged her not-yet-girlfriend.<br/>
„It’s alright,“ Marvin shrugged, „Sometimes it’s a bit dry.“<br/>
„But so is Marvin,“ Trina added and then introduced herself.</p>
<p>After that, Charlotte went to help Cordelia in the kitchen, leaving Marvin and Trina alone in the living room with the guy who Marvin remembered seeing when Cordelia asked Charlotte out for the first time.<br/>
He introduced himself as Mendel and looked strangely at Trina.<br/>
„I think I’ve seen you before,“ he stated, seemingly trying to remember where he did see her before, „Wait, we all were in that club when Delia and Charlotte first met, right?“<br/>
„Oh no,“ Trina’s face flushed, „Please don’t tell me you saw me there. I was incredibly drunk.“<br/>
„Didn’t you try to climb onto the DJ table?“<br/>
Marvin let out a laugh.<br/>
„Oh really?“<br/>
Trina buried her face in her hands.<br/>
„Great first impression. Usually, I’m pretty low key, actually,“ Trina clarified, „I turned 21 that night, and Charlotte wanted us to celebrate. So we had a lot of booze before we went to the club.“</p>
<p>Mendel laughed.<br/>
„Sounds like a great night.“<br/>
„I couldn’t tell, I forgot most of it,“ Trina admitted and sat down next to Mendel on the sofa.</p>
<p>Marvin couldn’t help but feel like he third-wheeled.</p>
<p>„I literally made a list to tell the others what happened, that’s how Delia found out about Charlotte,“ the curly-haired man said.<br/>
„That would have been a good plan if Marvin over here wouldn’t have left after 2 minutes,“ Trina gazed over to her best friend.<br/>
„20 minutes! I even had Tequila shots with you guys, and the only reason why I left was that drunk guy outside,“ Marvin defended himself again and then turned to Mendel for explanation, „There was this very drunk guy right in front of the club and he almost got kidnapped by some stranger, I mean what else was I supposed to do?“</p>
<p>Now, Mendel had a similar look to Cordelia only a few minutes ago.<br/>
Was that some sort of mannerism that they adapted from each other?<br/>
„That’s pretty noble, actually,“ Mendel nodded quickly. Then he gazed at his phone, „Sorry, I just need to text our friend why he’s taking so long.“<br/>
„Why didn’t you two come here together, anyway?“ Cordelia and Charlotte joined them in the living room.<br/>
„He texted me I should leave without him because he had some photography project to finish,“ Mendel replied.<br/>
„I think I’ll call him,“ Cordelia said quickly, already fleeing into the hallway.</p>
<hr/>
<p>„Hey Delia, I’m on my way. Still had this photography project to finish. So sorry,“ Whizzer answered the phone.<br/>
„You just finished screwing some random guy from Grindr, didn’t you?“ his best friend gave back unimpressed.<br/>
„You know me so well. Be there in ten?“<br/>
„See you in a bit,“ Cordelia said, „Oh, I have a surprise for you, by the way. So you better hurry.“<br/>
„Fine, be there in five.“<br/>
Cordelia was the one to hang up and Whizzer started walking faster.</p>
<p>He actually managed to arrive at the apartment in about 6 minutes.<br/>
„What’s the surprise?“ was his first question when Cordelia opened the door.<br/>
„I actually cooked something edible,“ Cordelia gave back with a slight smirk, „But there is another thing.“<br/>
„Can’t wait to find out. So, where is that girl you can’t shut up about?“<br/>
Obviously Charlotte was near enough to hear him say that since Cordelia started to blush slightly as you could hear a female laugh from the living room.<br/>
„I’m in here,“ a voice, matching her laugh, announced.</p>
<p>When Whizzer entered the living room, he found Mendel talking eagerly to some girl who must be one of Charlotte’s friends.<br/>
Charlotte, how Whizzer assumed, stood up from the sofa to greet him properly.<br/>
Only after then, Whizzer had time to look at the fourth person on the couch.</p>
<p>The man glared at him. Whizzer glared back.<br/>
„No way!“ Whizzer then called out, „Marvin, it’s so good to see you again! What are the odds, right?“<br/>
Marvin rubbed his hand over his face.<br/>
„That’s what I get for being a good person <em>once</em> in my life,“ he muttered.<br/>
„You two know each other?“ Charlotte asked surprised.<br/>
„No,“ Marvin said without hesitation.<br/>
„I wouldn’t put it that way,“ Whizzer gave back grinning, „I woke up in his bed three weeks ago.“<br/>
„Marvin!“ the girl next to Mendel called out.<br/>
„That is <em>not</em> what happened,“ Marvin tried to clarify, but Whizzer decided that it would be just so much more fun to just not let him.</p>
<p>„Wait, Delia, you <em>knew</em> about it?“ Whizzer interrupted Marvin instead.<br/>
„I got the feeling when he told me his name,“ she shrugged with a slight grin.<br/>
„I got a feeling when Marvin told me about saving some drunk guy,“ Mendel added, „What kind of coincidence is that?“</p>
<p>„So, Whizzer is the Drunk Guy? But, Marvin, didn’t you say you didn’t hook up with a guy from the club?“ the girl now asked.<br/>
„I didn’t- We didn’t hook up!“ Marvin called out emphatically.<br/>
„Wait, I still have your sweater, right?“ Whizzer mentioned, just to nettle Marvin a bit more.<br/>
„This gets more and more interesting,“ Charlotte said and sat down on the sofa again.<br/>
Marvin took a deep breath.<br/>
„Okay, everybody now shut up and let me explain,“ He then said, especially looking at Whizzer.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„I don’t know, Marv, that really doesn’t sound like you,“ the girl, she had introduced herself as Trina, said after Marvin finished telling the whole story.<br/>
By now, they already started dinner.<br/>
Cordelia didn’t lie when she claimed she actually cooked something good once in her life. She loved cooking, actually, she invited Whizzer and Mendel over for dinner on a regular basis. But sometimes (often) they just ordered pizza after taking the first bite.<br/>
Cordelia kept trying. And Whizzer admired her for that, he really did.<br/>
Today, the food tasted great. Thank God.</p>
<p>„Well, I really didn’t want to go back inside,“ Marvin tried to explain his behavior, „I mean, many weird things happened that night. Charles‘ bought her crush a drink, and Trin‘ lost her bag.“<br/>
„And <em>I</em> didn’t have <em>any</em> guy to buy me a drink,“ Whizzer added.<br/>
„You <em>did</em> have a guy to take you home,“ Mendel noted, catching a grim stare from Marvin, „But hey let’s change the topic! So, Trina, you lost your bag?“<br/>
The psychology student seemed to be incredibly interested in Charlotte’s friend.</p>
<p>Trina groaned.<br/>
„Yes! I had my keys, my credit cards, and my ID in there. I’m just glad I left my phone in my dorm,“ She then started rambling, „Marv‘ and I looked for it the next day, but we couldn’t find it.“<br/>
Mendel listened to her story as if it was the most interesting thing he had heard in years.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Again: there is no such thing as overuse of italics.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. You’re jealous because I got a hot girlfriend</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Mend needs advice, Whizz doesn't get straight people, Delia has an idea and Marv hates group chats.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Same tho, Whizz.</p><p>Enjoy! :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Mend💡:</strong> Guys<br/>
<strong>Mend💡:</strong> Can you guys come over?<br/>
<strong>Mend💡:</strong> Like, right now?<br/>
<strong>Mend💡:</strong> Please?<br/>
<strong>Delia💞:</strong> Just finished class<br/>
<strong>Delia💞:</strong> On my way<br/>
<strong>Delia💞:</strong> But I think Whizz has class now<br/>
<strong>Me:</strong> i take any excuse to skip my classes</p><p>That was the moment Whizzer turned around on his heels and headed back towards the dormitories instead of the class building.<br/>
It took less than five minutes for him until he arrived at Mendel’s room.<br/>
Since Mendel was basically afraid of anything and anyone, his dorm room door was usually locked. So, Whizzer didn’t even bother to try turn the doorknob and knocked instead.</p><p>Mendel opened the door on him, his hair was sticking up to all directions as if he’d been ruffling it for hours.<br/>
„I’m so glad you’re here now,“ He breathed, „I really need your advice.“<br/>
Whizzer furrowed his brows and looked at his friend.<br/>
„What’s up?“ He then asked, „You okay?“<br/>
Mendel started at him for a moment until he responded. He nodded quickly and looked away.<br/>
„Yeah! Yeah I’m okay. I just... need advice. I just want to wait for Delia.“</p><p>Still a bit worried about his friend, Whizzer let himself fall on the small sofa.<br/>
That was his usual spot whenever the group hung in Mendel’s dorm room. Which they did pretty often, actually, since Mendel had a single dorm, while Whizzer had his roommate (who was rarely present) and Cordelia didn’t live on campus.</p><p>Mendel’s room was decorated with pictures and pride merchandise. The small picture wall next to the desk mostly showed him and Delia (Whizzer was the one to take the photos, after all), along with some selfies of all three of them.</p><p>Mendel jumped up from his bed when another knock on the door announced Cordelia’s arrival.<br/>
„Mend‘, are you alright?“ She asked similar to Whizzer as she entered the dorm room.<br/>
Mendel’s reaction was almost the same. Again, he nodded quickly and claimed he just needed some advice.</p><p>„Is it about Trina?“ the Blonde asked out of the blue and sat down in the bean bag, her usual spot.<br/>
Mendel started babbling.<br/>
„How do you...“<br/>
„Well, it was kind of obvious when we had dinner all together and you didn’t pay attention to anything else than that girl,“ Whizzer grinned, „So what’s up with you two?“<br/>
„My girlfriend said, they started to meet up for study dates in the library!“ Delia spilled.</p><p>„Girlfriend counter,“ both Mendel and Whizzer said at the same time and the photography student pulled out his phone to make another X in the list.<br/>
„Two more and you have to treat us to coffee, Delia.“<br/>
„I didn’t agree to those rules,“ Delia pouted, „You’re just jealous because I got a hot girlfriend.“<br/>
„And another one.“</p><p>Right after the dinner, Cordelia and Charlotte became girlfriends. Which was basically just a formality, at this point.<br/>
Since then, Delia barely addressed Charlotte by her name, rather calling her ‚my girlfriend‘,<br/>
What was adorable at first became slightly annoying, which lead to Whizzer coming up with tracking all those incidents and Cordelia having to treat Whizzer and Mendel to Coffee when she reached a certain amount of times.<br/>
By now, the counter was on 29.</p><p>„They are not dates! Anyways,“ Mendel took a deep breath, „She texted me at first, asking if I could help her with some study method I told her about.“<br/>
„Exciting,“ Whizzer deadpanned, „How did it go?“<br/>
„Well, after the library closed, we just started talking about, y’know, life and other stuff.“<br/>
„Saucy,“ Delia commented.<br/>
„So, we just sat in the courtyard until 4 am. I brought her to her dorm afterward, her roommate was mildly pissed off by that, and then I went back to my dorm.“<br/>
„Young love,“ Whizzer said, „So what happened then?“</p><p>„Well, nothing. She just texted me, asking if I came back to my dorm safely. And then she texted good night,“ Mendel pulled out his phone and unlocked it, „She used the pink heart emoji.“<br/>
„Which one?“ Delia wanted to know, „The one with the bow?“<br/>
„No, the one with the sparkles.“<br/>
„I don’t get straight people,“ Whizzer let his head fall on the armrest.<br/>
„Trina is not straight, actually!“ Mendel noted, „She’s bi! She dated Charlotte in their freshman year in college.“</p><p>Delia sat up and raised her eyebrows.<br/>
„Well, now that’s a nice thing to hear, especially when it’s <em>not</em> your girlfriend who told you.“<br/>
„You owe us coffee, babe,“ Whizzer said.<br/>
„Trina actually also dated Marvin in high school,“ Mendel continued, „But they figured they just don’t match that way.“</p><p>„Yeah, because he is a big Gay,“ Whizzer shrugged, „What’s the news?“<br/>
„So, Mend‘, what’s the deal with Trina and you now?“ Cordelia looked up from her phone. (Obviously, she must have texted Charlotte.)<br/>
Mendel tore open his eyes.<br/>
„There’s no deal! We just... study. And talk. God, I <em>love</em> talking to her.“</p><p>„So, Mendel has a big fat crush on Trina, so glad we got to establish that,“ Whizzer said dryly, „But didn’t you say, you’d need advice?“<br/>
„I <em>do</em> need advice,“ Mendel finally proclaimed, „I don’t know how to ask somebody out.“</p><p>In fact, this was the first time ever that Mendel planned on asking someone out. He has had his little crushes before (and Whizzer and Delia knew about all of them because Mendel could not keep things to himself, even if his life depended on it) but he never actually asked somebody out before.<br/>
Mostly, because he was an awkward disaster.</p><p>„Oh sweetheart,“ Delia said with a voice you’d use to talk to a toddler, „It’s not hard, don’t worry. Maybe you can ask her to go to lunch together when you guys study next time?“<br/>
„She could mistake that for a platonic invitation,“ Whizzer added, „Dinner is more clear.“<br/>
„Don’t you think dinner might be a bit too formal for the first date?“<br/>
„Maybe they could go to the movies beforehand?“</p><p>„Guys,“ Mendel intervened, „The thing is, I’d <em>love</em> to take her on a date. Like, <em>really</em>. But what if I ask her out and she tells me that she only sees me as her study buddy?“<br/>
„Ouch, the study buddy zone,“ Whizzer sighed, „Been there, done that.“<br/>
„You literally did not have a single serious relationship once in your life,“ Delia deadpanned, „Stop mocking poor Mend.“<br/>
„Sorry. Okay Mend,“ Whizzer looked back to the curly-haired, „Are there any signs?“</p><p>„What signs? There are <em>signs</em>?“ Mendel looked at them confused.<br/>
„Y’know, like lingering gazes,“ Cordelia explained, „Or touching your arm playfully. Did you notice anything like that?“</p><p>Mendel scratched his head.<br/>
„I don’t know. Maybe? I’m not sure.“<br/>
„Okay Mendel, we love you, we really do, but you suck at this.“<br/>
„Whizzer!“<br/>
Delia glared at him.<br/>
Whizzer held up his hands in defense.<br/>
„That’s what makes him lovable!“<br/>
„I’ll stay lonely for the rest of my life,“ Mendel whined and let his head fall onto his pillow.<br/>
„You won’t,“ Cordelia said certainly, „We’ll help you. Won’t we, Whizz?“<br/>
„Hell yeah!“</p><p>„And how?“<br/>
Mendel almost sounded hopeless.<br/>
„I think we just need to see the two of you interacting,“ Cordelia proposed.<br/>
„So should we hide behind the shelves in the library and observe them?“ Whizzer asked amused.<br/>
„Of course not,“ the Blonde gave back, „But I have an idea.“ </p>
<hr/><p><em>(Contact not saved) <strong>Cordelia 🌺</strong> created a group chat<br/>
<strong>Charles</strong> added you<br/>
(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Cordelia 🌺:</strong> Hey guysss 💝<br/>
After the nice dinner, we had some time ago, Charlotte and I thought that maybe we could have a movie night at my apartment soon! U guys in?</p><p>Marvin hated group chats. He still saved Cordelia’s number. He was not an animal.</p><p><strong>Charles:</strong> We don’t know yet what time or movie, maybe we could all decide together. What do you think?<br/>
<strong>Trin:</strong> Great idea!!!<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Mendel W.:</strong> Yes, movie night sounds great!<br/>
<strong>Cordelia:</strong> So glad u guys like the idea 💞<br/>
<strong>Cordelia:</strong> Hows next Saturday?<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> cant wait<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> 8pm?<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> lets order pizza for dinner</p><p>Marvin rolled his eyes. Obviously, Whizzer just had to put this emoji behind his nickname.</p><p><strong>Cordelia:</strong> Dont u want me to cook again? 🥺<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> ofc babe but u already cooked last time 💜<br/>
<strong>Trin:</strong> No need to prepare anything big, Cordelia! Pizza sounds alright.<br/>
<strong>Mendel:</strong> I think so too.<br/>
<strong>Charles:</strong> So, what movie shall we watch?<br/>
<strong>Cordelia:</strong> How about this: everyone of us suggests one movie and then we decide?<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> yassss, lets do this</p><p>Marvin was asking himself if Whizzer would say something like yass in real life. He probably would, he seemed to be that kind of person.</p><p><strong>Charles:</strong> I suggest: Inside Out<br/>
<strong>Mendel:</strong> The Greatest Showman<br/>
<strong>Cordelia:</strong> Spirited Away<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> zootopia<br/>
<strong>Trin:</strong> Titanic<br/>
<strong>Trin:</strong> OMG, Inside Out always makes me cry<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> same sis<br/>
<strong>Trin:</strong> And I get scared during Spirited Away and Zootopia. But that’s alright, I’ll live, lol<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> in conclusion: animated movies.</p><p>Marvin decided not to participate in the discussion.</p><p><strong>Charles:</strong> Marv‘, hbu?</p><p>There’s to that.</p><p><strong>Me:</strong> Rent.<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> were not gonna see a musical<br/>
<strong>Me:</strong> Rent is a classic!<br/>
<strong>Me:</strong> How is Rent different to The Greatest Showman?<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> the greatest showman has zac efron.<br/>
<strong>Me:</strong> How’s that special? Rent has Tracie Thoms.<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> who?</p><p>Marvin rolled his eyes.</p><p><strong>Trin:</strong> Marv and I watched the Rent movie together once and he kept humming every song along.<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> so were not gonna see rent, so glad we established that<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> what r we watching now?<br/>
<strong>Cordelia:</strong> Now, everybody writes in their favorite suggestion. And you are forbidden to take your own suggestions. Gogogo!!</p><p>Marvin let out a sigh.<br/>
Did he ever agree to join the movie night, after all?</p><p><strong>Charles:</strong> The Greatest Showman.<br/>
<strong>Cordelia:</strong> Zootopia<br/>
<strong>Trin:</strong> The Greatest Showman<br/>
<strong>Mendel:</strong> Titanic<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> spirited away<br/>
<strong>Me:</strong> The Greatest Showman<br/>
<strong>Cordelia:</strong> The Greatest Showman it is!! Yay! 🥰<br/>
<strong>Cordelia:</strong> Saturday, 8pm, we order pizza and watch The Greatest Showman.<br/>
<em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> there better be popcorn 🍿</p><p>Again, Marvin rolled his eyes. He did not need the matching emoji to understand what Whizzer meant with popcorn, and he was fairly certain the others didn’t, too.<br/>
He threw his phone on the sofa, went back to the desk and tried to focus on his assignment again.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>It took about 3 years to format this, so if I made any mistakes, I will set myself on fire.<br/>(Also, Whizzer is too gay for capitalization and punctuation. I actually spent longer than necessary to define everyone's texting-style, just wanted to throw that in)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. What’s it like to be so not fun?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>On most days, owning a car is a huge advantage. Today is not one of those days.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>The one where Whizzer is the only one who knows how public transportation works.<br/>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Whizzer didn’t have a driver’s license.<br/>
When he was 15, still living in Omaha, Nebraska, his older sister would drive him, herself and their younger sister to school. And since she loved driving, she would just proceed when he turned 16.<br/>
He and his sisters were each only one year apart. So when his older sister left for college, his younger sister would drive them to school.<br/>
When he turned 16, Whizzer’s Mom wanted to show him how to drive. He didn’t like it. He couldn’t put a finger on it, but something bothered him. So, he just didn’t do it.<br/>
He was fine with walking or taking the bus.<br/>
That applied just as well when he moved to New York. Fine, public transportation sucked sometimes, but it did its job most of the time.</p><p>Whenever he was asked, he would just use his favorite excuse:<br/>
„What, I’m gay.“<br/>
He also said this when people commented on the amounts of coffee he drank, or when somebody asked how much money he spent on hair products.</p><p>Mendel and Delia both knew how to drive. But the lesbian didn’t own a car, and after that one time she drove Mendel’s truck, both men were very glad about this.<br/>
While Cordelia drove as if she didn’t fear death at all, Mendel was incredibly cautious. But his truck was currently in repair, so he could not drive Whizzer and himself to Cordelia's apartment for the movie night.<br/>
Luckily, Trina, who apparently didn’t own a car as well, proposed that Marvin could pick them up. Marvin’s and Cordelia’s apartments were exactly 10 minutes of walking apart. But since nobody except for Whizzer knew about the bus line, that could bring them from campus to Cordelia in less than 30 minutes, Marvin was forced to agree.<br/>
Whizzer decided to keep the information about the bus line to himself. For reasons.</p><p>So, on Saturday, Whizzer and Mendel both got into Marvin’s old car.<br/>
„Marvie, it’s so good to see you again!“ he squeaked when he got on the front seat, earning Marvin’s first annoyed glare of the night.<br/>
„Hey Mendel, don’t you want to sit on the front seat?“ the driver proposed, looking at Mendel in the rear-view mirror.<br/>
„I’m alright,“ the psychology major gave back and glanced out of the window, obviously looking out for Trina to enter the parking lot.<br/>
„He wants to sit with Trina!“ Whizzer chirped, „So, sweetheart, how have you been doing? Did you have a nice week?“<br/>
The man behind the steering wheel rolled his eyes.<br/>
„If there is one thing I regret from the bottom of my heart, it is that I saved you the other night.“<br/>
„Ouch!“ Whizzer let out a laugh, „So if I call you the next time I’m drunk you won’t take care of me?“<br/>
„Mendel, <em>please</em>-,“ Marvin groaned, turning around to the man on the backseat, but in that very moment, Trina opened the door and entered the vehicle.<br/>
„Hey you guys,“ she greeted the three happily, „Hyped for movie night?“<br/>
„Marvin is in an extraordinarily good mood tonight,“ Whizzer proclaimed gleefully.</p><p>„Hey, that’s my sweatshirt!“ Marvin called out when he maneuvered the car from the parking lot.<br/>
Whizzer acted surprised when he looked at himself in the side-view mirror.<br/>
Of course, it was on purpose. He just wanted to fuck with Marvin.<br/>
„Guess it is,“ he gave back casually, „What’s your point?“<br/>
„Uh, I want it back, obviously,“ Marvin said, „No, I demand that you give me my stuff back after you didn’t even have the decency to ask for permission to take it.“</p><p>They stopped on a red light.<br/>
„Damn, I’m afraid I have to bear some bad news,“ the photography student turned his head to look at the man on the driver’s seat, „You’ll need to rip it off my marvelous body if you want it back.“</p><p>Marvin blinked two times, shook his head slightly and then looked back at the road. The light had turned green.<br/>
„You fucking wish,“ he then mumbled, „Asshole.“<br/>
„Oh, you don’t?“ Whizzer asked innocently.</p><p>Yes, fucking with Marvin could easily become his new favorite activity.</p>
<hr/><p>After a car ride that felt like an eternity (thanks to Whizzer on the passenger seat), Charlotte opened them the door to her girlfriend’s apartment.<br/>
They made it official right after their dinner. Of course, they did. Both groups got along with each other (if you disregard how annoying Whizzer was most of the time).<br/>
Marvin remembered how big Charlotte’s grin was when she emerged from the kitchen to tell him and Trina that she’d stay over at her girlfriend’s apartment instead of joining them on the way back.</p><p>He was happy for her, he really was. Just as happy as he was for Trina because she recently told him that she started meeting up with Mendel on a regular basis. They did look pretty sweet together, and Marvin had his fingers crossed that he would not do anything to hurt Trina.<br/>
Still, he cursed fate for making him cross paths with Whizzer again. Like, what were the odds?<br/>
He asked himself if Whizzer would be such a pain in the ass if he didn’t rescue him, but if they just met each other at that dinner.<br/>
Probably, Marvin figured.</p><p>But when the six of them all got comfortable in Cordelia’s living room, it suddenly hit him:<br/>
With Charles dating Cordelia and Trina and Mendel constantly hanging out together, Marvin was sort of stuck with Whizzer.<br/>
Well, he noticed when Charles and Cordelia ended up cuddling in the armchair and Trina and Mendel were sunk into another one of their conversations that made both of them forget everything and everyone around them.<br/>
With the psychiatry student and the biology major huddling on the one side of the sofa, Marvin was left with sitting on the other side, hunched up against Whizzer. He gladly chose the floor to sit on instead.</p><p>„Rude!“ the man in Marvin’s sweatshirt said pettily, „That’s not how you get a guy to give you back your clothes.“<br/>
„I thought you wanted me to rip them off your body,“ Marvin quoted him boldly without even looking at him.</p><p>„Guys, stop flirting!“ Cordelia shushed them, „Charles and I thought about ordering 4 big pizzas for everyone to share, everybody alright with that?“<br/>
The group collectively nodded.<br/>
„What toppings?“ Marvin asked.<br/>
„Pepperoni, Mushroom, Pineapple, and Vegetarian for Trin,“ Charlotte listed up.<br/>
„Thanks, you two!“ Trina smiled gladly.<br/>
„Wait, who’s the creep upon us, that eats pineapple on pizza?“ Whizzer now noticed.<br/>
„It’s me, asshole“ Marvin rolled his eyes, „Did you ever even try it?“<br/>
„I don’t have to try it to know that fruits on a pizza are disgusting.“<br/>
„You know, technically the tomato is a fruit as well, but would you eat pizza without tomatoes?“<br/>
„Oh my God, you’re seriously pulling off the whole <em>the tomato is a fruit</em> thing?“</p><p>„Pizza will be here in 40 minutes!“ Charles announced in between their fight, „Shall we start the movie?“<br/>
„Hey, wait, where is the popcorn?“ Whizzer intervened.<br/>
„Ah, it’s still in the kitchen,“ Delia remembered, „Mind to get it?“<br/>
She grinned apologizing at the taller man, who sighed and got up from the sofa again.<br/>
„Can you also bring the brownies I made this afternoon?“ she shouted after Whizzer when he had already left the living room.</p><p>Marvin caught a glance from Charles. She looked at him with that specific look, seemingly asking <em>What’s up with you and him?</em><br/>
The finances student just shook his head with a serious face. Just because they were the only ones left it didn’t mean they had to start hooking up.<br/>
Charlotte shrugged, she did not seem very convinced.</p><p>„Delia, you did a great job on the brownies,“ Whizzer announced chewing when he entered the living room again, now carrying not just a plate full of brownies topping on the popcorn bowl but also two bottles of wine and six glasses, „You don’t mind my wonderful idea of getting slightly tipsy, right?“<br/>
„I love your ideas, babe,“ the blonde grinned and waited patiently for Whizzer to fill up the first glass.<br/>
„None for me, thank you,“ Marvin noted.<br/>
„Tell me, Marvin, what’s it like to be so <em>not fun</em>?“ Whizzer teased him and poured in the sixth glass anyway.<br/>
„I’m literally driving your poor ass home.“<br/>
„Guys, please!“ Charlotte now pleaded, „Now that we have popcorn, brownies, and booze, let’s start the movie?“</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Obviously, Whizzer is from oMaHa, NeBrAsKa.<br/>And Marvin is totally one of those <em>technically, the tomato <strong>is</strong> a fruit</em> people.</p><p>(Also, pineapple on pizza is really not so bad, you may fight me on this. I'm a vegetarian who doesn’t like mushrooms, I can’t be picky.)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. A straight-up prude</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The movie night continues. Wine (and tea) gets spilled.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Heyo folks,<br/>Ao3 got blocked in China (where I am currently living), which makes it hard for me to update this fic, BUT I am doing my best to keep up with my 3 days rhythm! (Nobody noticed that? Oh, alrighty.)<br/>But heey, due to, uh, <em>current events</em>, I had enough time to write throughout the entire last month (And by that I mean that I already wrote to chapter 30......... Well, curfew did its thing), and I won't start going to work again until mid-march, so there is plenty of time for me to finish this fic.<br/>ANYHOW, enjoy! :)</p><p>I'd like to dedicate this chapter to my best friend (who doesn't even know falsettos and STILL reads my fic, because she is THAT amazing).</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>By the time the pizza arrived, Cordelia and Mendel were performing along to <em>The other Side</em>, like they did every time the song played anywhere.<br/>
Whizzer remembered their first Thanks Giving break in freshman year in college when they were on the highway heading for Nebraska to celebrate with Whizzer’s family. The first and only time, Mendel allowed Cordelia to drive his car.</p><p>She was going way too fast, singing at the top of her lungs, while Mendel really tried to enjoy their duet but couldn't stop looking at the speedometer.<br/>
„Jesus Christ, Delia, you’re gonna kill us all,“ he had called out when the Blonde took one hand from the steering wheel and held it towards Mendel for him to shake it as the characters in the movie did in the song.<br/>
„You have to shake my hand, Mend!“ Cordelia had stressed excitedly, „So we can seal our deal!“<br/>
„Just do it, Mend, I’m to pretty to die in a car accident,“ Whizzer had begged from the backseat.<br/>
That was when both men decided that Delia wasn’t allowed to drive ever again.</p><p>So, obviously, Mend and Delia could not answer the door. Neither could Trina, who watched both of them fascinated, as they performed their little tradition. So was Charlotte, she was looking at her girlfriend with amusement and such affection that Whizzer suddenly felt insanely happy for Delia to have found this nugget.</p><p>He nudged Marvin, who still sat on the floor in front of him, with his leg.<br/>
„I carry the boxes, you pay the food,“ the taller man said and stood up.<br/>
„Why do I have to pay?“ the other one asked but got up as well.<br/>
„You literally study money. Besides, I have none with me.“<br/>
Marvin glared at him annoyed.<br/>
„Of course you don’t.“</p><p>The photography major opened the door and took the pizza boxes, while Marvin actually fumbled the money out of the pocket of his jacket.<br/>
„But if it’s so important for you, of course, I’d treat you for pizza anytime,“ Whizzer grinned when he closed the door.<br/>
„You are the cockiest human being I ever met in my entire life.“<br/>
Whizzer didn’t respond to that, he just smirked and winked at the other man.<br/>
„Your OTP made dinner,“ he then announced when they came back into the living room, „Grab a piece so I can continue to thirst over Zac Efron.“</p><p>„What’s your thing with Zac Efron? Whenever he appears in a movie you go all heart-eyes,“ Delia opened one of the boxes (it turned out to be mushroom) and took a slice.<br/>
„Uh, <em>yeah</em>,“ Whizzer sat down on his spot again, „You’re a lesbian, you don’t get it. I’d totally let him bone me.“<br/>
„What a nice conversation to have during an innocent movie night,“ Mendel exclaimed, taking a bite of the vegetarian pizza slice in his hands.<br/>
„So you’re trying to tell me if you had the chance to fuck Zac Efron you wouldn’t? Sounds fake but okay.“</p><p>„I mean, he’s alright, but next to Zendaya he’s not my first choice.“<br/>
Out of all people, Whizzer did definitely not expect innocent Trina to contribute to this conversation. Didn’t Mendel describe her as shy and sweet?<br/>
„No more wine for Trina,“ Charlotte announced, „She loses her pureness when she drinks.“<br/>
„C’mon Charles, I’m only like two months younger than you,“ Trina protested but Mendel already took the empty wine glass (Whizzer was pretty certain that she filled it up only a few minutes ago) out of her hands.<br/>
She pouted at the psychiatry major for a few seconds, crossing her arms. Then she leaned her head against his shoulder and continued pouting at the rest of the group.<br/>
Mendel blinked confused, making eye contact with first Whizzer, then Cordelia, who both started to grin heavily. Seemingly overwhelmed with what to do, Mendel slowly raised his arm (both Delia and Whizzer nodded assuring) and put it around the biology student.</p><p>Surprisingly, Trina didn’t notice any of this.</p><p>„So, you mean little sweet Trina gets slutty when she drinks?“ Whizzer asked excited, „Trina, I think this is the start of an amazing friendship.“<br/>
„Don’t you dare, Whizzer“ Charlotte went full mom-mode, „She is tiny and precious.“<br/>
„I’m literally right here,“ Trina intervened, „Just because I’m the youngest you don’t have to treat me like a child. Back me up on that, Marv!“<br/>
Marvin chuckled.<br/>
„Isn’t it past your bedtime, little one?“</p><p>Trina groaned and now basically threw her back against Mendel’s upper body, her head leaning against his chest.<br/>
The wine really made her less shy.<br/>
Cordelia and Whizzer both exchanged glances, probably both questioning how oblivious their friend had must been if he really had any doubts in asking out Trina.</p><p>Whizzer asked himself if Mendel came out to Trina yet since she just put her head against his chest without any hesitation. But then he saw how she slightly shifted her head to quietly ask him something, to which Mendel just responded with a quick nod before Trina got comfortable again.<br/>
They really looked adorable.</p><p>„So,“ Whizzer clapped his hands, „Now, let us all think about the following question: Out of all of us, who is the biggest slut?“<br/>
„You,“ 5 different voices answered without hesitation. Which was remarkable, since he expected at least some hesitation from Charles, Trina, and Marvin. Fine, he didn’t expect Marvin to be polite.<br/>
„First of all: Rude. But true,“ Whizzer didn’t even see the point in denying, „So, who’s next in the line?“</p><p>For a few seconds, they all fell silent and seemed to be thinking about it.<br/>
„Drunk Trina,“ Marvin then said confidently.<br/>
„With the emphasis on <em>drunk</em>“ Charlotte added, „<em>Sober</em> Trina is, and I cannot stress this enough: a precious child.“<br/>
„I’d like to contribute, that Drunk Charles literally threw herself at Cordelia,“ Trina mentioned.<br/>
„And Drunk Cordelia was very happy about that,“ Mend added.<br/>
„Well, that’s what alcohol does. It makes people sluttier,“ Charlotte took a sip from her wine glass.<br/>
„You never saw Drunk Mendel,“ Whizzer chuckled, „The guy gets even more awkward than he is usually.“<br/>
„Let’s get drunk together sometime, then,“ Trina proposed, grinning up to Mendel, who blushed slightly.<br/>
„Remember the last time we got drunk and you lost your bag and Whizzer almost got kidnapped?“ Marvin threw in.<br/>
„But gladly, I had this knight in shining armor to come and save me,“ Whizzer said in a high, feminine voice.</p><p>„Well, Charles went whole slut-mode and made a move on Cordelia,“ Trina defended her plan.<br/>
„But Drunk Me only did this because she had a crush on Cordelia for, like, <em>months</em>, and Sober Me has the bravery of a chicken nugget,“ Charlotte justified.<br/>
„That’s adorable, Babe,“ Delia grinned and leaned up to plant a kiss on her girlfriend’s lips.</p><p>The leftover four all made noises of disgust. Marvin threw popcorn at them.<br/>
Giggling, the lesbians parted.<br/>
„Well, I know who’s at the other end of the sluttiness-scale,“ Charlotte said with a glance at Marvin.<br/>
„Oh wow, Charles, hit’em where it hurts,“ he just gave back unimpressed.<br/>
„I don’t know Charles, I think Mendel would fit there as well,“ her girlfriend brought up.<br/>
„I’m no prude!“ Mendel debated, „I’m just awkward.“<br/>
„But you’re not exactly slutty, dear,“ Cordelia took another bite from her pizza, „But like, there’s nothing wrong with that.“<br/>
„Well, Marv is a straight-up prude,“ Trina shrugged.<br/>
„Now what’s <em>that</em> supposed to mean?“ Marvin put his pineapple pizza down (How he could eat this garbage was a mystery to Whizzer) and turned his head.</p><p>„I mean, she’s not wrong,“ Charlotte said with an apologetic face, „You can be a little stuck up sometimes.“<br/>
„I’m not stuck up!“ the finances major protested, „I’m just not constantly looking for my next hook-up.“<br/>
„He’s saying that as if he <em>ever</em> had a hook-up in his entire life,“ Trina mumbled.<br/>
Damn, she got slutty <em>and</em> sassy? Whizzer started liking Drunk Trina <em>a lot</em>.<br/>
He had to suppress laughter.</p><p>Marvin glared at his best friend.<br/>
„I’ve… had relationships before,“ he then said quietly and then turned back to the movie, obviously offended.<br/>
„Yeah, with Trina,“ Whizzer giggled.<br/>
„Who the fuck told you about that now?“<br/>
„Sorry,“ Mendel said sheepishly and looked at Marvin, „Trina told me. I couldn’t keep things for myself even if my life depended on it.“</p><p>The man on the floor let out a sigh.<br/>
„Fucking amazing...“ he then mumbled, „Well, good thing Trina was not the only human being I was ever involved with.“<br/>
„Saucy,“ Whizzer called out.<br/>
Trina stared at Marvin as if he just told her that he saw the aliens landing on campus.<br/>
„What? Who?“ she asked with furrowed brows.</p><p>„Jonathan from theater class.“<br/>
„What? No way! When?!“<br/>
„Senior Year. It was not a big deal,“ Marvin shrugged and shifted uncomfortably.</p><p>„Is anyone actually surprised that Marvin dating another theater nerd?“ Whizzer asked.<br/>
„Jonathan wasn’t just a theater nerd, he was like one of the most popular guys in our year,“ Trina explained, „Hell, Marvin, why don’t I know about this?“<br/>
„It was not serious. It was, like, just a showmance. Nothing huge. Can we please stop talking about high school?”<br/>
Trina nodded hesitantly and leaned against Mendel again.</p><p>All in all, the movie night brought Whizzer some new insights:<br/>
He couldn't wait to see Drunk Trina in all her glory.<br/>
Marvin was not just a theater nerd but also dated one in high school.<br/>
And Mendel definitely had not a single thing to worry about asking Trina out. And if Mendel did not recognize that all by himself after tonight, Delia and Mendel should be seriously worried about their friend.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. That’s what they call personal growth</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Sometimes, all you need is a therapy session with your best friend in the passenger seat.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Welcome back to my sad excuse of a decent college AU, everyone!!<br/>This one is actually my favorite chapter in the whole fic, so I hope you guys enjoy reading it as much as I do!<br/>(Tbh I just adore this Marvin-Trina-dynamic.)</p>
<p>Enjoy! :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>For their way back to campus, Marvin had asked Trina to ride shotgun.<br/>„I know you’d rather be on the back seat with Mendel, but if I have to drive another 15 minutes with Whizzer in the passenger seat, I’ll straight-up drive into the Hudson.“<br/>Gladly, Trina agreed.<br/>That did not keep Whizzer from being the pain in the ass he always is towards Marvin, but it was easier to bear when it came from the back seat.<br/>It also started raining heavily, so if he concentrated on the rain instead of on Whizzer’s voice behind him, he was alright.</p>
<p>„Thanks for picking us up, Marvin,“ Mendel said, „I should have my truck back in a few days, so whenever you need a ride, just hit me up!“<br/>Marvin let out a laugh.<br/>„Thanks for the offer, man.“<br/>„Thank you for driving, Marvie,“ Whizzer chirped the same way he did when he entered the car earlier the night.<br/>„Anytime, Whizzie,“ Marvin mimicked him with a sarcastic smile.</p>
<p>„Trina, I can accompany you to your dorm room, if you want,“ Mendel offered.<br/>But the woman on the passenger seat just smiled and shook her head.<br/>„That’s so sweet, Mend, but I think I’ll wait here with Marv until the rain fades a bit more. No need to wait for me, you two can go.“<br/>Mendel nodded, „Good night then. Trin, text me when you’re in your room safely?“<br/>Trina smiled again, „I will. Good night, Mend. Night, Whizzer.“</p>
<p>Marvin and his best friend watched the two men running through the rain. Mendel waved one last time before they took a left to the dormitories.<br/>„Okay, Trina, what’s up with you and Mendel now? I thought you were just meeting up to study.“<br/>Trina blushed slightly.<br/>„We <em>are</em> just meeting up to study.“<br/>„That was a lot PDA for study buddies,“ Marvin laughed, „He seems like a good guy.“<br/>„He is,“ even though it was almost completely dark in the car, Marvin could see how Trina’s face lit up, „I think he might ask me out.“<br/>„Why don’t you ask him?“<br/>Trina shrugged.<br/>„I’m shy and low-key. At least if you don’t give me alcohol.“<br/>„Keep us updated. On how <em>Trindel</em> goes.“<br/>Marvin grinned teasingly. Trina let out another laugh.<br/>„If anything happens, you will be the first person to know. Because that’s what best friends do.“</p>
<p>Suddenly, there was a tiny bit of disappointment in her voice. Marvin felt guilt creeping up immediately.<br/>„Marv...“ Trina took the word again, „Did you make the thing up? You dating Jonathan? Because it’s ridiculous to be ashamed of not having had a serious relationship. I mean, neither have I or Mendel or Cordelia before she met Charlotte.“<br/>Mendel really couldn't keep things to himself, Marvin thought.<br/>„What I’m trying to say is, sorry for earlier when I called you prude.“<br/>Marvin exhaled.<br/>„It’s alright. I mean, you’re not wrong,“ he chuckled lightly, „But I did not make it up.“</p>
<p>Trina tilted her head slightly.<br/>„Really? Now that’s new...“ she mumbled, „What was up with that? How did that happen?“<br/>Marvin scratched his head, trying to remember. High school felt like forever ago.<br/>„I think it was a few weeks into rehearsals for the first show in senior year. I had a crush on him since my very first show.“<br/>„You joined the tech crew in junior year!“ Trina called out, „How did you keep that to yourself?“<br/>Marvin shrugged, „I thought it was silly. I mean, he was <em>so popular</em>, why would he even look at me?“</p>
<p>„And how did you start dating?“<br/>„That’s a really dumb story,“ Marvin said, a smile on his face, „He had trouble with his costume, came up to me to help him and I stopped functioning.<br/>So, after some other guy from the tech crew solved his problem, Jonathan came up to me again, thanking me for <em>at least trying</em> and then he whispered into my ear that he thought it was adorable how flustered I became.“<br/>„That smooth fucker!“ Trina let out a laugh.<br/>„We went out a couple of times, did some sneaking around backstage. It was pretty sweet.“</p>
<p>Marvin was glad to finally talk about it. It was three years ago, and nothing more than a high school fling, but back in the days he had felt awful when he couldn't tell Trina.<br/>„Why didn’t you make it public?“<br/>„Because I am a fucking coward, obviously. That’s why we broke up, eventually. He got tired of hiding and I wasn’t ready to come out.“<br/>Trina smiled ensuring at him and put her hand on his shoulder.<br/>„It’s okay, Marv. You know that, right? It’s okay to be queer. Not one single person tonight in Cordelia’s apartment was straight.“<br/>Marvin nodded, glancing out of the car window.<br/>„I know. And I knew back then. I mean, I never had a problem with gay people. It was just hard to accept that I’m one of them.“</p>
<p>„Marv?“<br/>„Hm?“<br/>„That was the first time you actually said you’re gay.“<br/>Trina’s smile went wider.<br/>„Huh...“ Marvin nodded slowly, „Guess it was. That’s what they call <em>personal growth</em>, right?“<br/>„Yes, indeed it is.“<br/>The friends looked at each other and started laughing again.<br/>„I’m proud of you. I mean it, I really am,“ Trina eventually said, „Even if you’re not ready yet to fully come out.“</p>
<p>„I think, I don’t have a problem with people knowing it. It’s just hard to say it out loud. It feels odd to say that I like men.“<br/>That was a thing Marvin actually thought a lot about. When people just assumed that he was straight, he didn’t say a thing. When they assumed he was gay like Charlotte did, it was weird at first, but it felt right. It felt true, because well, it was.<br/>„Marv, sorry to disappoint you, but you just said it out loud.“<br/>„That’s different. I said it to you, you’re my best friend, you don’t count.“<br/>Trina crossed her arms, „Oh wow, thank you, Marvin,“ she said, pretending to be upset.<br/>„Come on, you know what I mean!“<br/>The woman turned her head and looked at the man with kindness in her eyes.<br/>„You’re damn lucky I do. Come here,“ then, she pulled him into a hug.</p>
<p>Marvin felt like a huge weight fell down from his chest, the moment he wrapped his arms around Trina’s narrow waist.<br/>He knew that he still had a hell of a journey ahead, in terms of accepting himself and his sexuality fully. But he felt like tonight, by finally telling Trina all those things, he already made a huge step.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Me: writes about Marvin's high school boyfriend because it kinda matters for the plot<br/>Also me: starts shipping it.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Something boring</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Whizzer seeks for help in the library.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>The next 3 chapters have been soooo much fun to write, and I hope that you guys like them!!!<br/>Enjoy! :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><em>Turn something boring into something exciting.</em> That was the task they were given in class. And that’s what Whizzer led into the library.</p>
<p>He usually didn’t go there. In fact, that was only the fourth time ever that he went to the college’s library. He did his homework in his dorm (or in Mendel’s) and didn’t bother much with studying. If he studied at all, he also did that in his dorm room.<br/>His grades were okay-ish. He managed to pass most of his exams, and for him, that was enough.<br/>The few times he went into the library he was literally forced by Mend or Delia.<br/>Now today, he had to find something boring. After a short brainstorming, Whizzer decided to go to the library. Maybe he would find something to work with.</p>
<p>He did. Rather someone than something.</p>
<p>When he entered the room, his glance got stuck onto that one particular student that sat on a table a few meters away. He wrote something down, very old school with a pen on paper.<br/>„Don’t you own a laptop or something?“ Whizzer asked as he sat down opposite Marvin.<br/>„What?“ Marvin said, pulled out one earbud and looked up. When he saw Whizzer, his expression changed immediately into annoyance.<br/>„I asked you if you don’t have a laptop since you are writing an essay on paper as if we live in the 16th century.“</p>
<p>The shorter man sighed.<br/>„I prefer writing by hand. Don’t know why. That’s just how it is. You got more to say, or can I continue working?“<br/>„Marvie, I have so many things to say, if you’d let me talk for 20 hours straight I would.“<br/>„Amazing,“ Marvin deadpanned and put back in his earbud.</p>
<p>He <em>did</em> look incredibly boring, Whizzer thought. Now he just needed to find something to turn the sad sight of a student in front of him into something exciting.<br/>Whizzer’s finger drummed on the table while he thought about possible ways to a) make Marvin less boring and b) convince him to help him in the first place.<br/>The finger drumming must have annoyed the man opposite him, just as everything he did, because after a few minutes he stretched out his hand without even looking up from his homework, and placed it over Whizzer’s to make him stop.<br/>„Oh, we’re holding hands now? You’re sending mixed signals, Marvin.“</p>
<p>Marvin did not respond. He either ignored the taller man or just didn’t hear him over his music.<br/>After a few more seconds, he let go of Whizzer’s hand again. Of course, Whizzer re-started to finger drum immediately.<br/>„Hey, whatcha listening to?“ he now asked, partly to annoy Marvin, partly to get inspired how to turn boring Marvin into something interesting.<br/>No response.<br/>Without much thinking, Whizzer reached over the table to look at Marvin’s phone to look at the playlist. Of course, the theater nerd listened to show tunes.<br/>„What are you doing?“ said theater nerd snapped and took out both earbuds by brutally pulling the cord.<br/>„You wouldn’t answer,“ Whizzer shrugged, „I asked you what you are listening to.“<br/>„And that gives you the right to touch my stuff?“ Marvin glared at him.<br/>„Well, no, obviously not,“ Whizzer now stated, „But I did it anyway.“</p>
<p>Marvin took a moment to respond, seemingly thrown off the track by Whizzer’s utter boldness.<br/>„Well, if you know it’s wrong, why are you doing it?“<br/>„That’s what I do. The games I play,“ the taller man shrugged, „I must say, Marvi, I’m not surprised about your taste in music.“<br/>„Hell, can’t you just leave me alone?“ The theater nerd groaned.<br/>„No I can’t,“ Whizzer clarified, „Because turns out, I need your help.“<br/>The man raised his eyebrows.<br/>„And why exactly do you think I’d help you? So far, you literally did not one single thing for which I could possibly owe you.“<br/>„Because you can’t resist my awfully cute puppy eyes?” Whizzer tried. But Marvin only raised his eyebrows further.</p>
<p>„Please?“<br/>The shorter man let out a laugh.<br/>„Not until I saw you begging on your knees.“<br/>„Marvin Philipps wants me to get on my knees for him? That sounds about right.“<br/>„Goodbye, Whizzer.“<br/>He was about to put the earbuds back in, and Whizzer got off his chair.<br/>What he was about to do might hurt his dignity, but he really wanted Marvin to be in this shot. Mostly because Whizzer was stubborn, and if he had something stuck in his head, nobody could stop him from getting what he wanted.</p>
<p>„Please, Marvin, I am literally begging you to help me with my project,“ he said, kneeling next to the man’s chair.<br/>Marvin turned towards him, crossed his arms and didn’t respond, a sly smile on his lips.<br/>„Is that a yes or a no?“<br/>„I’m just trying to remember this moment in all its glory.“<br/>Whizzer rolled his eyes.<br/>„So?“<br/>„Alright. Just let me finish my essay. Ten minutes.“<br/>Without any further words, Marvin put in the earbuds again and continued writing.</p>
<p>After twenty-five minutes, Marvin put down his pen and started to pack his bag.<br/>„Finally,“ Whizzer groaned. He did wait patiently for the entire time, even though he started to play Candy Crush about three minutes after Marvin continued writing on his essay.<br/>„Whatever you wrote, it seemed to be incredibly boring.“<br/>„At least I major in something that is actually useful after I graduate,“ with a side glance towards the camera Whizzer was carrying, Marvin got up from the library chair, „You coming?“<br/>„Where do you want to go?“ Whizzer asked and got up mildly confused, „You don’t even know what the project is about.“<br/>„Well, first I want to get out of the library because it is incredibly rude to talk in here.“<br/>The photography major just nodded and followed the shorter man outside.</p>
<p>„So,“ Marvin turned around to face the other one, „What do you need my help for?“<br/>„I’d like to photograph you. For a project.“<br/>Marvin nodded slowly.<br/>„That’s all?“ he then asked, his furrowing his brows.<br/>„Well, not exactly. But I already have an idea. You’ll like it.“</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Some weird tension</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The pretty boy disrespects props. The theater nerd cannot tolerate that.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They didn’t talk on their way to where ever Whizzer was leading them. About what would they possibly talk, after all? It was not like they were friends who were interested in each other’s lives. Besides, Marvin sucked at small talk, and to him, Whizzer wasn’t even worth trying.<br/>It was not until they reached the college’s theater hall, that Marvin took the word again.<br/>„What the heck is your even project about, why are we here?“ he asked.<br/>„The title is <em>turn</em> something boring into something exciting,“ Whizzer just gave back and knelt down to pick up one of the stones that were placed as decoration next to the entrance.<br/>„Wait, are you saying, I’m <em>boring</em> and you want to turn me into something exciting? Why the hell are you randomly picking up stones?“<br/>„Do you always ask so many questions?“ Whizzer asked and stood up from the ground, now holding a key in his hands.</p>
<p>That’s how they got inside the theater hall at 10:30pm on a Thursday night.<br/>„How did you know where to find the key?“ Marvin now wanted to know.<br/>„I once had sex in a dressing room.“<br/>Of course. What did Marvin expect?<br/>„Whizzer Brown slept with a theater nerd?“ Marvin teased and made a few steps ahead, looking around in the theater hall.<br/>„He was hot. Are you getting your hopes up, poor boy?“<br/>„Oh, totally,“ Marvin said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, „If I could, I would take you right now, right here, in the middle of that stage.“<br/>„It’s adorable how you still think you’re only joking,“ Whizzer’s suddenly stood right behind Marvin, his voice was more of a whisper than anything else. A sudden shiver went down Marvin’s spine. Awkwardly, he took another few quick steps towards the stage, mostly to get away from the sudden closeness to the other man.</p>
<p>„So...“ Marvin cleared his throat, „Do you have a concept or something I should do?“<br/>Cautiously, he turned around to avoid Whizzer trying to make him flustered again. Empathizes on <em>tried</em>, he added in his mind. Because he was not flustered. Why would he get flustered? Just because Whizzer was another pretty boy who thought the world belonged to him? He just had taken Marvin by surprise. That was it.</p>
<p>„Not really. Maybe we can go backstage and snoop around a bit? I have condoms with me, in case you get overwhelmed by lust,“ Whizzer said, obviously amused by Marvin’s reaction a few seconds ago.<br/>„You seriously need to stop to project your own horniness onto every existing male individual.“<br/>Admittedly, Marvin was surprised by his own sudden boldness.</p>
<p>To Marvin, it always sounded like a big deal when somebody said they’d go <em>backstage</em>. That was until he joined the tech-crew in high school. Turned out, <em>Backstage</em> was not as exciting as it sounded, it was not champagne bottles and a huge buffet. Mostly, it was thermos bottles with tea and props lying around, maybe a sheet cake someone brought for everyone to share. („I sure hope this is diary-free.“)<br/>Still, when Marvin wandered through the door that said <em>crew only</em> on it and entered the backstage area, he felt like he came home from a long journey.<br/>Memories flooded his brain as he looked around and saw all the props and costumes, waiting for quick changes, and for one moment, Marvin allowed himself to get lost in the whole atmosphere of <em>theater</em>.</p>
<p>„What are they playing?“ Whizzer broke through Marvin’s thoughts.<br/>„You’re the one screwing a crew member,“ the latter just gave back and started to carefully browse through the few costumes hanging on a clothing rail.<br/>Whizzer snorted with amusement, „You really think we talked about that?“<br/>„They’re playing Legally Blonde,“ Marvin knew, of course, he did, he had watched every show since freshman year. He gave up begging Charlotte to join them, but he did drag Trina along every time, „They are opening next month.“</p>
<p>„That explains all the pink. And the law book.“<br/>As Marvin turned around, he saw how Whizzer held up one of the props.<br/>„Hey hey hey, put that back!“ the theater nerd said rushed and closed the distance to the other man, to take the book out of his hands and put it back on the table, „Don’t you know <em>anything</em> about theater?“</p>
<p>„Do I look like I do?“ Whizzer raised his brows and looked down at Marvin.<br/>„You don’t touch a prop unless it’s yours.“<br/>„Why?“<br/>Marvin huffed, „Well when somebody can’t find their prop during the show, everything descends into chaos. How would you feel if I took one of your camera lenses and put it just anywhere else?“<br/>To Marvin’s surprise, Whizzer nodded in understanding.<br/>„Got it. I’d kill you.“</p>
<p>Not until then, Marvin noticed that they were, once more, uncomfortably close. Only this time, he could not blame the other man, since it had obviously been Marvin who approached the other one in an attempt to prevent him from misplacing the prop.<br/>A few seconds of silence passed, silence and some weird tension between the two men.</p>
<p>Again, Marvin cleared his throat and took a step back.<br/>„That’s one of the most important rules in theater,“ he then said, slightly awkward.<br/>„What?“ Whizzer asked as if Marvin just disturbed him in his thoughts.<br/>That seemed uncommon for Whizzer. To be distracted by his own thoughts.<br/>„Taking other people’s props,“ Marvin explained, „It’s one of the most important rules in theater.“<br/>„Are there more nerdy rules?“ Whizzer smirked.<br/>The older one took a few seconds to think of another thing.<br/>„Well, if you say the name of the Scottish Play, people will yell at you.“<br/>„What Scottish Play?“<br/>„I won’t say it, that’s not gonna happen.“<br/>The taller man pulled his lips to a sly smile and shook his head.<br/>„Nerd.“<br/>„Pretty boy.“<br/>„Marvie, I’m not quite sure if you get the concept of insulting people.“</p>
<p>„Well, the thing is, you are nothing more than pretty. That seems to be your only character trait. You’re attractive and you use that fact for every advantage you can possibly get.<br/>But at the end of the day, you are nothing more than that.<br/>A pretty boy.“<br/>The words just came flooding out of Marvin’s mouth. He had been thinking about that for some time. (He definitely did <em>not</em> think about Whizzer as a person.)</p>
<p>„Maybe you just didn’t get to know me, yet.“<br/>What could be used as a flirty reply, did not sound like one. At all.<br/>It sounded more like Whizzer was hurt by Marvin’s words.</p>
<p>„Would you like me to?“<br/>Marvin looked directly into Whizzer’s eyes.</p>
<p>Whizzer didn’t answer his question.<br/>„I think maybe we’ll find something in the general equipment,“ he said instead and rushed past Marvin towards another door.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This chapter is presented by:<br/>The author misses their theater group</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Something exciting</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marvin falls in love with what was always right in front of him.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Half of this is character study and so far I‘m not quite sure if I don’t suck at character studies.<br/>So...<br/>Enjoy! And stay safe out there, folks. Wash your hands and all that!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Would Whizzer like to? He couldn't really tell.<br/>Would he like Marvin to get to know him properly?<br/>Whizzer enjoyed being a phantom, some mysterious guy that you meet in a bar and feel attracted to. Maybe he really wasn’t more than a pretty boy.</p>
<p>Sure, Mendel and Delia knew him. Due to three years of friendship and their annual Thanks Giving trip to Omaha. They basically knew almost every detail about him, mostly because Whizzer’s sisters were little shits who wouldn’t shut up about how <em>Andrew</em> was as a kid.</p>
<p>When was the last time Whizzer ever voluntarily opened up to anyone? He really couldn't tell.<br/>The thing was, he didn’t need to. He didn’t need to open up or get to know the guys he was dating. He didn’t even care what the guys last name was, as long as he was a decent fuck.<br/>Sad but true. And usually, Whizzer loved how easy his love life was.<br/>Whenever he saw how Mendel lost his mind over another classmate, or how Cordelia tried to find out if that girl had been <em>just nice</em> or flirting. He was glad not to have these problems because it was easy to just look for his next fling on Grindr and leave afterward.</p>
<p>Did Whizzer want to get to know Marvin?<br/>He’d let Marvin screw him. That’s what he thought the first time they met. (Or at least the first time that Whizzer actually remembered.) After all, Marvin was attractive, there was no need to deny that.<br/>But did Whizzer really care what went on in that guy’s mind? Did he feel the urge to know about his problems and deepest thoughts?</p>
<p>Now that the two groups seemed to become one, thanks to Delia and Charles, it seemed like they’ll be spending some time together in the future. Especially since Mendel and Trina also would become an item sooner or later. Did that include actually getting to know each other?<br/>Maybe their relationship would just be like it is right now: Whizzer flirting playfully and Marvin rolling his eyes.</p>
<p>By now, both men stood in a room full of costumes from previous shows. Multiple clothing rails were in here, colorful dresses, pretentious robes, and some accessories were stuffed in the small chamber.<br/>„Take this,“ Whizzer ordered Marvin to do and held out a crown he picked up from a hook on the wall.<br/>„I think you’re more of a queen than I am.“<br/>„First of all: true. Second of all: You really need to work on your insults.“<br/>„But I guess you’re more a tiara kind of guy,“ Marvin mumbled and took the crown from Whizzer’s hands.<br/>„Obviously, a tiara wouldn’t mess up my hair,“ Whizzer gave back, „Wanna go on stage?“</p>
<p>Wandering around backstage, Marvin seemed like he belonged.<br/>Whizzer thought that from the first second on, that they went through that door. The shorter man was almost glowing, he had looked content as he browsed through the costumes.<br/>Explaining theater rules to Whizzer had made his eyes sparkle. And no matter if Whizzer wanted or not, he found it adorable.<br/>Marvin, who was grumpy 90% of the time, suddenly was excited about all this. Whizzer really did turn something boring into something exciting.</p>
<p>The scenery on stage was not even halfway finished. Whizzer had to use his phone’s flashlight to light up their way. The curtain was closed as if the two of them were actors who waited for the show to begin.<br/>„Stand right there,“ Whizzer now said, pointing towards the very middle of the big stage.<br/>Marvin was about to go there, when Whizzer grabbed him by his shoulder again, „Wait, one more thing...“<br/>Marvin looked up to him, as the taller man adjusted the crown on the other man’s head. Then, Whizzer grinned.<br/>„Perfect. Go.“<br/>„What am I supposed to do?“ Marvin called from a few meters distance.<br/>„Just act natural. You’re an actor, aren’t you?“<br/>„I’m not. I was a techie.“<br/>Whizzer shrugged.<br/>„Theater nerd is theater nerd. Break a leg.“<br/>With that, he opened the curtain and turned on the spotlights.</p>
<hr/>
<p>Marvin exhaled. He was on stage. The spotlights felt warm and made his skin tingle.<br/>So, what was his character? He was a king, obviously, he was wearing a crown.<br/>What could he do, a king, all alone on a stage?<br/>He chuckled. The first thing to come into his mind was King George from Hamilton.</p>
<p>So, he started to sing. He even forgot that Whizzer, somebody who he’d usually never sing to, was there.<br/>In fact, he wouldn’t even sing to Trina or Charlotte.<br/>Trina once heard him singing in his bedroom, way back in the summer before their junior year of high school.<br/>That day, she had been incredibly bored and decided to come over to Marvin’s house spontaneously. She didn’t even send a text, she just rang the doorbell, his mother let her in and told her to just go upstairs. Trina barged into him literally performing some song from <em>Spring Awakening</em> and spent the rest of the summer with convincing him to join their school’s theater group.<br/>In the end, they made a compromise: Marvin would join, but only in the tech-crew.</p>
<p>For him, that was enough.<br/>Being on stage would be too frightening, just not his kind of thing. His bedroom was enough of a theater hall to him, the CDs on the shelf being his audience.<br/>But now that he actually was <em>on stage</em> and felt the whole atmosphere, he finally understood that this, <em>right this</em> was the thing he wanted to do for the rest of his life.<br/>Yes, he was insecure, he was frightened. What if he wasn’t enough? What if people would laugh at him? What if, what if?</p>
<p>But at this very moment, he found that maybe, just maybe, it may be worth trying.</p>
<hr/>
<p>Whizzer grinned when he looked at the photograph. The bright spotlight, the dark, empty theater hall in the background and the silhouette of the boy with the crown. The flannel shirt, that was a bit too big on his slender body. The tousled locks that peaked out under the crown. The crown that had slipped out of place again, but it didn’t matter.</p>
<p>He forgot almost everything around him, just staring at his camera. He almost missed Marvin’s final notes, but when the finance major finished his song and the room fell silent, Whizzer put his camera aside again and started clapping.<br/>Marvin jumped slightly and turned around, a subtle red hue on his cheeks.<br/>„Got your shot?“ he asked, walking towards the taller man, taking the crown off his head.<br/>„Yeah. It looks good, ever considered modeling?“ Whizzer teased, „Wanna see it?“</p>
<p>„I like it,“ Marvin said, holding Whizzer’s camera in his hands. He grinned just as Whizzer did when he looked at his shot.<br/>The two men now sat in the auditorium, facing the stage with its unfinished scenery.<br/>Whizzer held the crown in his hands, wondering why Marvin had taken it off in the first place.<br/>„Thank you,“ he gave back plainly.<br/>Silence fell over them, while Marvin still stared at the picture of himself.</p>
<p>„That was a weird song,“ Whizzer took the word again, „What kind of sick bastard says ‘I will kill your friends and family to remind you of my love’?“<br/>Marvin chuckled, „King George in Hamilton.“<br/>Whizzer let out a laugh, „Of course.“<br/>„That was the first thing that came into my mind. I though I’d just go for it,“ the other man shrugged.</p>
<p>„I liked it,“ Whizzer said sincerely, „So, you never played? Like, ever?“<br/>Marvin shook his head.<br/>„Why?“<br/>Then, he shrugged, „I didn’t think I was good enough. So I joined the tech-crew in high school instead. That was enough, I never felt like I had to be more than that.“<br/>„Marvin,“ Whizzer raised his arms and put the crown back onto the other man’s locks, „I think you should try it.“<br/>His fingers lingered in Marvin’s hair for a few seconds before he pulled his hand away.</p>
<p>But the theater nerd shook his head.<br/>„I don’t really have time for musical theater anymore,“ he said, turning his head towards the stage, „My major doesn’t really give me free time for rehearsals.“<br/>„Marvin, can I ask you something?“<br/>„You’re gonna do it anyway, no matter what I answer now, will you?“<br/>„Uh, yeah, I was just being polite.“</p>
<p>He turned back and looked at Whizzer.<br/>„Sure, ask.“<br/>„Do you even like your major?“<br/>Marvin looked down at his feet, seemingly thinking about the question.<br/>„I think,“ he then started slowly, „I think I don’t.“<br/>„Then why did you choose it?“<br/>„Because it’s safe. My parents talked me into it. I mean, they didn’t tell me what to do. They just… Gave me the idea. I didn’t disagree with them,“ nervously, Marvin twisted his fingers, „I don’t think they even know that I don’t like it.“</p>
<p>Whizzer just nodded.<br/>„Do you think you’ll ever tell them?“<br/>Without even looking up, Marvin shook his head.<br/>„It’s alright, it’s not like I hate it. I just don’t particularly like it.“</p>
<p>„Hey Marv,“ Whizzer put two fingers under his chin and gently lifted his head up, „You deserve to do things in life that you actually enjoy. You know that, right?“<br/>Marvin didn’t respond as he locked eyes with the other man. But Whizzer swore, that his gaze slipped down to his lips for a split second.<br/>But then the moment was over, and Marvin shifted uncomfortably in his seat, before standing up and taking off the crown again.<br/>„I think I will bring this thing back and then I’ll head home. It’s late already, and I have class at 8:30 tomorrow.“</p>
<p>When he disappeared behind the <em>crew only</em> door, Whizzer couldn’t help but feel slightly disappointed.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This chapter is presented by:<br/>The author misses being on stage.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Just another pretty boy</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marvin just wanted to provide emotional support for his best friend getting ready for her not-date.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey folks,<br/>I'll be busy packing for the next few days, so chances are high I'll forget uploading new chapters, but I promise it'll get better again when I'm back in Europe!!</p>
<p>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„So let me get this straight,“ Marvin hastily took a sip from his tea mug before he continued talking, „You’re going to the movies and grab dinner afterward, and you still don’t want to call it a date?“<br/>„Calling it a date would get my hopes up!“ Trina tried to justify herself and held up two blouses, „Which one?“<br/>„The green one,“ Charles said, „Honey, you are <em>allowed</em> to get your hopes up, in fact, you’d be oblivious if you didn’t get your hopes up.“</p>
<p>Trina facetimed both of them around 6pm, one hour ago, explaining her dilemma:<br/>She didn’t know how to dress for her date. Which wasn’t a date, what she wouldn’t get tired to emphasize.<br/>While Marvin knew, that he really wasn’t a big help, he now at least tried to provide emotional support.<br/>„I’m with Charles on this one,“ he stated and opened the web browser on his computer to check his e-mails, „Last Saturday you said you <em>expected</em> him to ask you out sometime, now he finally <em>did</em> ask you out, so what’s the deal?“<br/>„The deal is,“ Trina exhaled, „I don’t want to end up disappointed afterward.“</p>
<p>Both of her friends groaned.<br/>„Trina, that guy is literally all heart-eyes whenever he looks at you,“ a voice, belonging to Trina’s roommate, said.<br/>„What Caroline says,“ Charles nodded.<br/>„I think we rather should be worried about poor Mendel, he’s the definition of anxiety,“ Marvin logged into his account, „He’s probably hyperventilating right now.“<br/>„Delia says he’s alright, just nervous,“ the medical student said.</p>
<p>„He’s nervous?“ Trina now asked.<br/>„Well, obviously, it’s Mendel, have you ever seen him relaxed?“<br/>„I did, actually! The other day we were in his dorm room and we talked about high school and stuff, and he seemed perfectly calm.“<br/>„Having deep conversations about life? Sounds like dating to me,“ Charles claimed.</p>
<p>Marvin furrowed his eyebrows, looking at his laptop.<br/>„Hey, Charles, do you know how Whizzer got my e-mail address?“<br/>„Yeah, I gave it to him, he wanted to send you some picture he took of you. What was that about, by the way?“<br/>„Marvin and Whizzer hang?“ Trina called out, lowering the hairbrush in her hand and staring right at the phone screen.<br/>„We don’t <em>hang</em>,“ Marvin clarified, „He needed my help for some project.“</p>
<p>„Since when do you do favors for other people than us?“ Charles asked.<br/>„He was literally begging. He got on his knees.“<br/>„All it needs for you is a guy on his knees?“ Trina chuckled.<br/>Marvin rolled his eyes.<br/>„That joke wasn’t funny when Whizzer made it, and it’s not funny when you make it.“</p>
<p>„What was the project about?“ Charles brought up again.<br/>„I think it was called <em>Turn something boring into something exciting</em>.“<br/>Trina let out a laugh.<br/>„He literally called you boring and you still helped him? Interesting, Marv, interesting.“<br/>„I mean, I may not like him, but the guy has some talent. The picture is pretty nice.“<br/>Marvin flipped the camera and showed the two of them the photograph.<br/>„I’ve been trying to get you on a stage for years!“ Trina pouted.<br/>„But you’re not some mysterious, handsome guy,“ Charles giggled.<br/>„Girls, <em>please</em>“ Marvin run his hand through his locks, „Could you stop?“</p>
<p>„I definitely ship it,“ Charlotte said, „I think it’d be fun. We could go on triple dates.“<br/>„Or, hear me out on that one,“ Marvin proposed instead, „We could not do that.“<br/>„Are you saying that you are not attracted to Whizzer at all? Not even a tiny bit?“<br/>The man shrugged.<br/>„I mean, he is attractive, I’m not denying that. But like, he’s just another pretty boy, does he have other character traits than being tall and cocky?“</p>
<p>„You barely know each other, maybe you could try to change that in the first place,“ Charlotte advised.<br/><em>That’s what I said!</em> shot through Marvin’s head, but he decided not to tell them.<br/>„I’m not interested. End of story.“</p>
<p>They didn’t need to know, what else happened between Whizzer and Marvin. The weird tension, that had been there all the time.<br/>His stomach dropping when Whizzer adjusted that stupid crown on his head, or when he placed it back on his head, his fingers lingering in Marvin’s hair longer than necessary.<br/>The sincere compliment, when Whizzer told him he liked what Marvin did on stage.</p>
<p>They would just get hung up on it. It was ridiculous, anyways.<br/>Even <em>if</em> Marvin had any romantic or sexual interest in the taller man, he wouldn't let it happen.<br/>Because Whizzer was <em>embracing the single life</em> and Marvin was chronically jealous. Even <em>if</em> things happened between the two of them, it could never be serious. Could it?</p>
<p>Hell, yesterday he bragged about getting screwed in the dressing room by some guy he didn’t know.</p>
<p>Marvin doubted, that Whizzer would change his life for anyone.</p>
<p>„That’s what you say now,“ Charlotte pointed out, „But wait until Trindel becomes real and you and Whizzer are the only ones left.“<br/>„So I’m not allowed to date people outside of the group?“ Marvin raised his eyebrows.<br/>„Well, that would include that you’d actually <em>date</em> another human being,“ Trina said, mildly distracted with applying eye shadow.<br/>„We didn’t talk about my love life once in the last few years, why are we starting now?“ Marvin wanted to know and stood up from his desk chair to fill up his mug, taking his phone with him.</p>
<p>„Because there wasn’t anything to talk about, except for your showmance with Jonathan, which you kept a secret from me,“ Trina said in response.<br/>„Yes, and there’s still nothing to talk about. And I already apologized for that.“<br/>„Marvin, I know that you’re not the kind of person to do this, but let me give you some advice:<br/>Whatever happens, let it happen. Roll with it. It might be worth it.“<br/>Marvin didn’t reply to Trina’s words.</p>
<p>„What lipstick?“ the biology major asked after some seconds of silence, holding up 3 different shades.<br/>„The one in the middle,“ Charles recommended.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>About half an hour later, Trina was off to her not-date, Charlotte announced she’d be heading over to her girlfriend’s apartment and Marvin sat back on his desk, looking at the photograph again.</p>
<p>That’s how Marvin’s evening could have ended.<br/>But unfortunately, around 11:30pm, some number he hadn’t saved, called him.<br/>Furrowing his brows, Marvin paused the bootleg he was watching and stared at his phone screen.</p>
<p>„Hello?“ he answered after hesitating a few moments.<br/>„Marvin! Thank God!“ a known voice, surrounded by loud chatter, sounded from the speakers.<br/>„Wait, Whizzer? Is that you?“ Marvin asked confused, „Why are you calling me?“<br/>„Don’t you have my contact saved, asshole?“<br/>„Well, no, I...“ he didn’t need to justify himself, he decided, „Why the hell are you calling me? It’s almost midnight.“<br/>„I need you to pick me up.“</p>
<p>„Are you drunk?“<br/>„Do you think I’d call you sober?“<br/>Marvin groaned.<br/>„Whizzer, I’m not your fucking babysitter. Grow up and solve your problems yourself.“<br/>Then, he hung up the call without much thinking.</p>
<p><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> marvin please<br/><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> please pleasE??<br/><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> ill take ypu out for dinmer as a thank you<br/><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> ill treat you for pineapple pihzza<br/><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> pleaee marvin im really fuked up without ur help<br/><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> marviiiii ppleaseeseeeee</p>
<p>He could just ignore it, mute his phone and go to bed.<br/>Whizzer was a grown man, he’d survive.</p>
<p><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> i need your help<br/><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> i mean it<br/><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> please pick me up<br/><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> illl explain in the car<br/><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> <em>location</em><br/><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> can u pick me up?</p>
<p>Marvin let out a sigh.</p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> Be there in 20.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. I know I’m pretty, you don’t need to stare</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marvin is a nice person, and Whizzer is pretty.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Heyo folks,<br/>Just quickly updating this fic before I get onto the plane back to Europe.<br/>Wish me and my friends luck that we don't catch the virus on the way, whoho.</p>
<p>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The location Whizzer sent him was a gay bar. What else? Where else should Whizzer Brown be on a Friday night?<br/>While he drove down the streets of New York City, Marvin asked himself why he agreed to do this. Whizzer <em>was</em> a grown-up, he could take care of himself. And even if he couldn't, it was not Marvin’s responsibility. If Whizzer decided to get drunk all by himself, that was his problem.</p>
<p>Because parking in the city was literal hell, Marvin stopped the car up the street and decided to walk the last few steps, hoping he wouldn't bump into someone he knew. He wasn’t really keen on explaining why he was here.</p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> I’m here now. Where are you?</p>
<p>Marvin didn’t dare to go inside. Instead, he waited on the opposite side of the street. Just in case somebody might recognize him.</p>
<p><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> i dont see u, where r u?<br/><strong>Me:</strong> Outside.<br/><em>(Contact not saved)</em> <strong>Whizzer 🌈:</strong> luv u too</p>
<p>He rolled his eyes<br/>A silhouette stumbled out of the door of the bar.<br/>„Marvin?“ the man called out into the night, „Marv?“<br/>„Jesus Christ“ the finances student mumbled, crossing the street, walking towards Whizzer.<br/>„Marvin! There you are! I’m so glad to see you!“<br/>With those words, Whizzer threw his arms around Marvin.</p>
<p>„I’m getting war flashbacks,“ the latter mumbled, pushing the drunk man off him, „We’re not making this a habit, alright? I won’t pick you up every time you get drunk.“<br/>Whizzer nodded and stumbled alongside him, as Marvin started the way back to his car.<br/>He didn’t seem as drunk as he did that night at the club.<br/>And he was all dressed up, wearing a turquoise button-up shirt. Just like he did when they first met, he was wearing makeup again. But he didn’t look like Trina, with eye shadow and all that, it was more subtle and Marvin could only tell because he knew what Whizzer looked like without it.<br/>Which didn’t mean he looked bad, in fact, Marvin was asking himself why Whizzer did this to his skin because even without makeup there was no blemish on it visible.</p>
<p>„I know I’m pretty, you don’t need to stare,“ Whizzer smirked, which would have been smooth if he didn’t trip over his own feet in the same second.<br/>„I’m not staring,“ Marvin lied and held out his arm for Whizzer to hold onto it on their way to the car. Just in case he’d trip again. Because that would cost time, and the sooner Marvin was back home, the better.<br/>„I’d stare at me, if I were you,“ Whizzer shrugged and took his arm, „I’m eye candy, y’know?“<br/>Marvin fumbled for his keys.<br/>„Well, you’re not me.“<br/>„Marvin, you are so <em>not fun</em>.“<br/>„No, but I’m picking you up because you got irresponsibly drunk again.“</p>
<p>He got Whizzer to sit down in the passenger seat and walked around the car, to get onto the driver’s seat.<br/>„So,“ he then began, locking the car from the inside, „Now, mind to tell me why I drove here to pick you up?“<br/>Whizzer inhaled.<br/>„So, around 8pm, I started to feel horny.“<br/>„That is really not what I wanted to hear,“ Marvin stopped him.<br/>„It’s all part of the story!“ the other man said, „So, I got myself ready to find a fling for the night.“<br/>„Hell, get to the point,“ Marvin groaned and started the engine.<br/>„So, I took a bus out here, and when I sat on the bus, I noticed: I don’t have enough money for a taxi back to campus.“<br/>„Are you fucking serious? That’s why I came out here?“<br/>„I’m not finished! Marvin, you need to <em>listen</em> if you ask for a story.“</p>
<p>Marvin took a deep breath.<br/>„Alright. Go on.“<br/>„So I thought <em>Ah, whatever. I’ll ask the fling for money</em>.“<br/>„Which you didn’t do, because now you’re in my car.“<br/>„Well, yes, <em>but</em> there’s a reason for that, and that reason is called consent!“<br/>„What the hell?“<br/>They stopped at a red light and Marvin glared at Whizzer with confusion.<br/>„Well, I arrived, some guy hit at me and bought me, like, a <em>shitload</em> of drinks“<br/>„I can see <em>and</em> smell that.“<br/>„So we went to the bathroom to, y’know, go at it.“</p>
<p>Marvin as impressed by how easily Whizzer just told him these things. But he’d probably do that to every stranger just as well, seen by how drunk he was. He’d probably do that sober, too.<br/>„I don’t need the details, thank you.“<br/>„So, anyway, we were, like, making out, when it suddenly hit me: I wasn’t horny anymore. Just like, not in the mood. Dunno why.“</p>
<p>„So?“<br/>The theater nerd pulled up his eyebrows.<br/>„Well, I may be a whore but I don’t have sex if I don’t want to have sex!“ Whizzer explained upset.<br/>„So you couldn’t ask him for money, because you didn’t sleep with him,“ Marvin completed the story.<br/>„Exactly! Finally, you got it!“<br/>„So you called me to play taxi and drive you back to your dorm.“<br/>The drunk man on the passenger seat made a weird sound.<br/>„Not exactly. I forgot my keys. My roommate went out to stay the night at his girlfriend’s apartment. Straights, amiright?“</p>
<p>The driver let out a groan.<br/>„So, just stay at Mendel’s then.“<br/>Whizzer gasped.<br/>„What if Trina is there?“<br/>Marvin let out a laugh.<br/>„I can assure you, I’ve known Trina for a long time now, she won’t sleep with Mendel until their 5th date.“<br/>„Casually talking about your ex-fake-girlfriends sex life.“<br/>„Trina wasn’t my fake-girlfriend, I just thought I was straight. And after we broke up, we became best friends.“</p>
<p>„I never had that. Thinking I was straight. I just grew up, being my gay self,“ Whizzer shrugged.<br/>„So, I’ll drive you to Cordelia’s apartment instead?“ Marvin changed the topic.<br/>Once again, Whizzer made that weird noise of disagreement.<br/>„Charlotte is over there. I really don’t want to disturb them.“<br/>„So, where do you think you’ll spend the night instead?“</p>
<p>In the corner of his eyes, Marvin saw Whizzer glancing at him with puppy eyes.<br/>„No. No way. Not again,“ he shook his head vehemently.<br/>„Marv, please! I’ll leave as soon as my roommate answers my texts!“ Whizzer was pleading.<br/>„Whizzer, you can’t seriously expect me to let you stay over at my apartment!“<br/>„Please, Marvin! I promise I’ll owe you one!“<br/>„You already owe me for a lot of favors I did you.“<br/>„So, then I owe you one more time. Please. Pleasepleaseplease?“<br/>Marvin glanced over to the man next to him, who looked at him with the same look he made when he begged Marvin to help him with his project.</p>
<p>„I can’t believe I’m saying yes to you once more,“ he then mumbled, shaking his head.<br/>„Is that a yes?“<br/>„Fine. Yes. Don’t tell anyone. If you tell anyone, I will block your sorry ass and leave you hanging next time you need help.“</p>
<p>Marvin hated how that implied, he’d help Whizzer again.</p>
<p>Satisfied with the results of their conversation, Whizzer let himself fall back into the seat.<br/>„Blocking my sorry ass would include that you’d save my contact,“ he then said, „I can’t believe you don’t have my number saved.“<br/>„Well, it’s not like I’d ever randomly think <em>Hey, why don’t I call Whizzer to talk about life</em>.“</p>
<p>„Ouch. Hey when’s your birthday?“<br/>„March 27th, why-“<br/>When Marvin looked over to the passenger seat, he saw Whizzer holding his phone.<br/>„Hey, put that down!“ he said, looking back and forth between the street and the photography major.<br/>„Setting a passcode is almost useless when it’s your birthday, Marv.“<br/>„What the hell are you doing?!“<br/>„Saving my contact,“ Whizzer said innocently, „Just in case you’re lonely and need some company.“</p>
<p>Marvin took another deep breath and turned the volume of the car radio higher.<br/>„<em>More</em> show tunes?“ Whizzer groaned.<br/>„My car, my music. Learn how to drive, then you can decide what music plays in your car.“<br/>Whizzer pouted and looked out the window.<br/>„Hey, that’s the song you sang yesterday,“ Whizzer pointed out after a few moments of silence.<br/>„Yeah. It’s from Hamilton.“<br/>„I liked your version better.“</p>
<p>Marvin couldn't help but smile.<br/>„You’re comparing me to a professional Broadway actor.“<br/>But Whizzer only shrugged.<br/>„So?“</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. You're cute</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Whizzer makes Marvin feel things. Marvin is not sure if he likes that, though.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I'm back home and I'm (once again) quarantined, hurray!</p><p>This chapter is a mess, but I like it <em>a lot </em>.<br/>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Whizzer had a hard time climbing up the stairs, but after some time they finally entered Marvin’s apartment.<br/>„I just want to make clear, I won’t sleep on the sofa this time.“<br/>„Sounds like we share a bed then,“ Whizzer smirked.<br/>„What? No. We won’t. You will sleep on the sofa.“<br/>Marvin pointed towards the living room.<br/>„What if I won’t?“<br/>Whizzer took a step closer to Marvin, still leaving plenty of space between the two men. Still, it made Marvin’s stomach twirl.<br/>„No. You’ll take the sofa. This is <em>my</em> apartment, end of story,“ Marvin gave back, his voice slightly cracking. Then he fled into his bedroom to grab a blanket and a pillow for Drunk (once again) Guy. When he came back, Whizzer still stood in the hallway, trying to kick away his shoes.</p><p>„You look ridiculous,“ Marvin said, watching.<br/>„The alcohol is kicking in,“ Whizzer mumbled and let himself fall (literally, fall) on the floor to sit.<br/>That did make sense. Due to the season, the temperatures outside were not exactly what one would consider warm, while Marvin’s apartment was pretty heated. Marvin hated freezing.<br/>„Do you need help?“ the shorter man asked amused.<br/>„No. I...“ Whizzer stretched his arms to reach for his shoelaces, but his outstretched legs appeared to be too long.<br/>It looked adorable.</p><p>„Y’know, I have a little brother,“ Marvin began and knelt down in front of Whizzer’s feet, „And when he was little, I always had to do- and undo his shoes. Because, well, he was a fucking toddler.“<br/>„Are you saying that I’m as cute as a toddler?“ Whizzer grinned.<br/>„I’m saying that you are as useless as a toddler when you are drunk.“<br/>„But I’m also cute.“<br/>„I’m not denying that.“<br/>Marvin felt daring. Whizzer wouldn't remember, anyway.</p><p>„Say it!“ Whizzer asked him when Marvin got up from the floor again, the shoes put aside.<br/>„Say what?“<br/>„Say that I’m cute.“<br/>„You’re cute.“<br/>He just said it how it was. Then, he laughed at the sight of Whizzer getting up from the floor again.</p><p>When Whizzer held onto him for balance, he stopped laughing. The hands on his waist felt awfully right and when Whizzer took them away shortly after, Marvin wanted them back there.</p><p>„You need to remove your makeup,“ Marvin mumbled, not daring to look directly into Whizzer’s eyes.<br/>„You’ll help me again, right?“ Whizzer asked and clumsily grabbed for Marvin’s hand to pull him towards the small bathroom.<br/>„You’re a grown man,“ Marvin chuckled slightly.<br/>„And I’m asking for help. You did help me last time, that’s what you said.“</p><p>Whizzer’s thumb gently drew patterns onto the skin of Marvin’s hand. And if Whizzer wouldn't have been so goddamn drunk, Marvin could have enjoyed it.<br/>He pulled his hand back, instead.<br/>„I’m too nice, you’re using that against me all the time,“ he said instead, following the taller man into the bathroom.<br/>„You’re much nicer to me when I’m drunk,“ he pointed out and sat down at the edge of the bathtub, „Why?“<br/>„I’m just pitying you. Drunk You has the chance of survival of a 3-year-old.“<br/>Marvin opened the bathroom cabinet and took the package of makeup-wipes. Trina and Charlotte left them a few months ago, when they were all staying at Marvin’s apartment for the weekend, studying for their finals together and playing Cards Against Humanity afterward.</p><p>„Delia said you’re a keeper. Because you helped me with removing my makeup the last time.”<br/>Whizzer looked up to Marvin, who now started to gently drag the wipe over his face.<br/>„That would imply that you’d had me in the first place,“ Marvin gave back dryly.<br/>„And that’s so unrealistic because…?“ the photography major raised his eyebrows.<br/>„Because. Just… because. You’re not the relationship-kinda-guy anyways, didn’t you say something like that?“<br/>Whizzer shrugged.<br/>„I mean, I like screwing around.“<br/>„Which would stop, if you actually committed to someone.“</p><p>„I guess.“<br/>Marvin threw the used makeup-wipe into the trash bin under the sink and took a new one.<br/>Silence filled the room for several moments, while Whizzer still looked up to Marvin, eyeing up and down his face and upper body.</p><p>„Did anyone ever tell you how good-looking you are?“<br/>„You get way too flirty when you’re drunk,“ Marvin shook his head, restraining a light giggle.<br/>„And you’re digging it. I see that in your eyes,“ the other man gave back smirking smoothly.<br/>„My Mom told me I looked handsome on prom night,“ the finances major answered the question with a sly smile on his lips.<br/>„Except for your mother, Marvin, I can’t believe I need to say that.“<br/>„Turn your head to the left,“ he just ordered the photography major to do, to reach the side of his face better.</p><p>„I don’t think you realize that you are fucking hot.“<br/>„Whizzer, stop flirting with me,“ Marvin was mildly amused by that, he had to admit, but it made his body tingle in ways he wasn’t quite sure he enjoyed or not.<br/>„Why? Not enjoying the attention?“<br/>Marvin threw away the second makeup-wipe and straightened his back again.</p><p>„Done,“ Marvin announced and turned back towards the man on the edge of the bathtub.<br/>„Thanks. Marv.“<br/>Again, Whizzer’s eyes went up and down on Marvin's body. Then, suddenly he leaned upwards, towards Marvin’s lips.<br/>Without even realizing what happened, Marvin took a step back. His lips had brushed the other man’s lips for only moments, but it still had left an unfamiliar feeling. Not a bad feeling though, just unknown.</p><p>„What the hell are you doing?“ he asked in a higher voice than he anticipated.<br/>„I tried to kiss you, obviously“ Whizzer looked at him as if Marvin was the most oblivious human being on earth.<br/>„Don’t do that!“ he stammered, „Because I don’t want to kiss you.“<br/>„Why would you not kiss me, I’m gorgeous,“ Whizzer furrowed his brows.<br/>„You probably threw up,“ Marvin used as an excuse.<br/>„I didn’t. So, now you can kiss me, right?“</p><p>Marvin dragged his hand through his hair.<br/>„You’re drunk. I won’t kiss you when you’re that drunk.“<br/>„So you’d kiss me if I was sober?“<br/>„I didn’t say that!“ he called out nervously.</p><p>„But would you?“<br/>Whizzer got up from the bathtub and stood right in front of him.<br/>„What?“ Marvin asked, taking a step back.<br/>„Would you kiss me if I was sober?“<br/>The taller man raised his hand and brushed through Marvin’s locks.</p><p>„Maybe,“ he swallowed nervously, then continued talking, „Ask me again when you’re sober and remember this whole night.“<br/>Whizzer just smirked, let go of his hair and nodded.<br/>„I will.“<br/>Then, he walked out of the bathroom, leaving Marvin behind in utter confusion.<br/>He wouldn't remember, there was no way. Right?</p><p>Normalizing his breathing again, Marvin looked at himself in the mirror. Jesus, he should just brush his teeth and go to bed.<br/>When he left the bathroom again, he noticed with relief that Whizzer was in the living room, settling down on the sofa. At least, this one time, he did what he was told.</p><p>That’s what Marvin thought, at least until he finally slipped under his covers, about to finally fall asleep.<br/>But a knock on the closed bedroom door proved him wrong.</p><p>„Marvin?“ Whizzer’s muffled voice sounded from outside the door.<br/>„Go back to bed,“ Marvin mumbled, already half-asleep.<br/>„I can’t sleep on the sofa, can I sleep in the bed? Please?“<br/>Without waiting for Marvin’s answer, Whizzer entered the bedroom. He had gotten rid of his dress shirt and pants by now, just leaving him in his boxers.</p><p>„What the fuck, no,“ Marvin sat up, „Go away, I’m trying to sleep.“<br/>„So am I, but the sofa is not comfortable to sleep on,“ Whizzer said in response.<br/>„Well, fucking ask me when I slept on it because a total stranger occupied my bed,“ Marvin rubbed his eyes and glared up to the other man.<br/>„You could have just slept in the bed with me, I’m not bothered by sharing a bed,“ he shrugged.<br/>„Whizzer, you literally were a total stranger to me, I won’t share the bed with a stranger. I’m not you.“<br/>„But we’re not strangers anymore, right?“<br/>„Well no, but-“</p><p>Whizzer didn’t let him finish, instead, he climbed over the shorter man and let himself fall onto the other side of the bed.<br/>„Much better,“ he grunted, his head buried into a pillow.<br/>„Dude, what the fuck,“ Marvin groaned, internally pondering whether he should sit through this or just take the sofa voluntarily.<br/>„Night, Marvie,“ Whizzer yawned, grabbing the other side of Marvin’s blanket and covering himself.</p><p><em>At least my bed is big enough</em>, Marvin thought, calming himself.<br/>The sofa was pretty uncomfortable, after all. When he crashed on there the last time, his back ached for three days.<br/>This might hurt his dignity, but at least his back would remain unharmed.</p><p>Before Whizzer would wake up in the morning, Marvin would be gone and just tell him, he slept on the sofa again. He wouldn't remember anyway.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Little did he know</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>What a Deja-vu.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>As I am uploading this chapter, I am playing cards against humanity online with my friends, so I apologize in advance for any mistakes.</p><p>Enjoy and stay safe!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Whizzer awoke in a not-so-unknown bed. The difference to the last time, however, was, that he still knew everything from last night.<br/>
That surprised him, he had to admit. He still remembered how he called Marvin, how Marvin picked him up and how awkward he behaved when Whizzer hit on him.</p><p>Oh boy, Whizzer hit on Marvin.</p><p>Just like the last time Whizzer awoke in this bed, the place next to him was empty. The mattress was still warm though, meaning Marvin obviously didn’t leave right after Whizzer fell asleep.</p><p>He was not really ashamed to have hit on Marvin. After all, he was an attractive man. But it seemed to make Marvin slightly uncomfortable. Actually, it did impress him, that Marvin flirted back once or twice.<br/>
But Whizzer had no idea what rode him when he tried to kiss Marvin. That just happened, without any thinking. He had just sat there, thinking <em>What if I kissed him?</em> and his body just started moving.<br/>
He did feel hurt when Marvin pulled back. But it was probably better this way because things might get awkward between the two of them if they slept together.<br/>
Marvin seemed like the kind of guy who would make it awkward.</p><p>Then, another thing came to Whizzer’s mind:<br/>
Marvin said, he didn’t kiss him because Whizzer was drunk. Meaning, if Whizzer was sober, Marvin <em>would</em> agree to kiss him. Right?<br/>
Fine, he only responded vaguely to that, but by now, Whizzer knew him well enough to know what that actually meant.</p><p>Marvin dared him to ask again when he was sober again. So he could go ask him now.<br/>
Or he’d just let it slide. Things would get complicated if poor Marvin caught feelings for Whizzer.</p><p>If he was being honest, Whizzer enjoyed their new little group. Charlotte was pretty cool, Trina was super sweet (if nobody gave her booze) and both of them seemed to make his best friends very happy.<br/>
And Marvin was, well… He was just Marvin.<br/>
Whizzer appreciated all of that way too much to risk it for one single night with Marvin.</p><p>So he decided to let it slide. Marvin thought he didn’t remember, he would just play along.</p><p>When Whizzer sat up, he noticed the glass of water on the nightstand, and he swore it wasn’t there yesterday. A post-it was sticking onto it.<br/>
<em>Thank me later</em>, was written on it in neat handwriting.<br/>
Whizzer huffed, a light smile on his lips, and drank the glass in one go before getting out of bed.<br/>
As far as he recalled, his clothes were still on the floor next to the sofa.</p><p>„He’s alive,“ Marvin commented on Whizzer walking past the kitchen door, heading straight for the living room.<br/>
„I figured I’d first get dressed this time, even though I still don’t understand how you can be bothered by my magnificent physique,“ Whizzer said in response while he struggled to put his legs into his pants.<br/>
„Wise decision,“ the other man called from the kitchen.</p><p>„Deja vu, huh?“ Whizzer said, walking back into the kitchen, still buttoning up his dress shirt.<br/>
Marvin’s gaze lingered on his chest for a split second before looking up to his face.<br/>
„I guess,“ he shrugged, „I found some instant coffee in the back of the cupboard if you want that.“<br/>
„Uhm, yeah,“ Whizzer nodded and smiled, „Maybe I should stay over more often, now that I don’t have to drink black tea to wake up properly.“<br/>
„Or maybe you just don’t do that.“<br/>
Marvin got off his chair and turned on the kettle.</p><p>„You removed my makeup again yesterday, didn’t you?“ Whizzer asked after a few moments of silence.<br/>
„Yeah,“ Marvin dragged his hand through his uncombed locks, „I also took off your shoes. My theory is, each drink you have turns you about three years younger, and yesterday you were practically three years old.“<br/>
„You think I only had only six drinks? That’s adorable,“ Whizzer chuckled.</p><p>„You’re lucky that I have a younger brother, so I know how to babysit,“ Marvin just said in his usual dry way.<br/>
„And that also gives you practice in removing makeup?“<br/>
„No,“ the finances major huffed, „But I had a high school boyfriend who played theater.“<br/>
„Hashtag relationship goals,“ Whizzer giggled as Marvin put down the coffee mug in front of him.</p><p>„Obviously, I slept on the sofa. You really owe me for that,“ the shorter man lied, taking a sip from his tea.<br/>
Whizzer knew he lied. He saw it in his eyes, and he did feel the warmth of the mattress before he got up.<br/>
„Thanks for taking care of me,“ Whizzer still said, „I know I’m a pain in the ass when I’m drunk.“<br/>
„Just when you’re drunk?“<br/>
„Asshole.“<br/>
„Prick.“<br/>
„God, you’re impossible.“<br/>
Both men hid their smirks behind their mugs.</p><p>„But I swear to God, the next time you call me to pick you up from some bar, I won’t do it.“<br/>
„Sure you won’t.“</p><p>Whizzer took a look at the man opposite him. He was wearing a worn-out t-shirt, Whizzer remembered that being his sleep shirt, and his hair was messy. But he seemed calm, even though Whizzer was present.</p><p>„So, you have a little brother?“<br/>
Was this the right time for small talk?<br/>
Marvin nodded.<br/>
„Yeah, he’s 11. He sometimes visits me, but I think he’s glad I moved out because now he has all these only child privileges.“<br/>
Whizzer tried to imagine Marvin giving piggyback rides to the child, or reading him bedtime stories.<br/>
„Well, before my younger sister went to college, I would talk to her on the phone, and she would first tell me about how great it is to be the only child in the house, and like 10 minutes later she’d be whining about how clingy Mom got since me and my older sister moved out,“ the photography major rambled.<br/>
„Middle child? Well, that explains a lot.“<br/>
„You are mean sometimes.“<br/>
„Not when you’re drunk, but you never remember the next day.“<br/>
Little did he know.</p><p>Whizzer drank up his coffee and stretched.<br/>
„I think I’ll leave soon. I’ll head over to Delia’s, maybe Charles can take me back to campus.“<br/>
The other man nodded, „Sure, yeah. But, uhm… Maybe don’t tell them about last night? I have a scary reputation to uphold.“<br/>
Whizzer grinned.<br/>
„Don’t worry. In my story, you will just be another one of my nameless flings.“</p><p>„Oh, how great.“<br/>
There he was again. Sarcastic, grumpy Marvin in all his glory.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. You know that, right?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Mendel talks about his date and Delia gives some advice.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Man, what can I say, I'm just really into writing friendship dynamics.<br/>Have fun reading the following 1,000 words of platonic love.</p>
<p>Stay safe, y'all!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Whizzer reached Cordelia’s apartment complex, Charlotte’s car was nowhere to be seen. Whizzer still hoped that the medical student might have just parked somewhere else, but he had the feeling that he would need to ask Cordelia to lend him some money.</p>
<p>„Oh, it’s just Whizzer,“ Cordelia said to someone on the phone as she opened the door, „Come in, I’m talking to Mendel.“<br/>„You’re gossiping without me?“ Whizzer gasped, stepping into the apartment, „Man, you really think you can trust someone.“<br/>„We thought you’d still be asleep, it’s 9am on a Saturday morning,“ Mendel (Delia put him on speaker) defended himself and the woman, „What are you doing at Delia’s?“</p>
<p>„Went out yesterday, found some guy to take me home. The usual. Hey Babe, where is your girlfriend, didn’t she stay over?“ Whizzer asked, following Cordelia into the living room.<br/>„She did, but she got a shitload of homework to do, so she drove back to campus about twenty minutes ago.“<br/>„There goes my ride,“ the photography major mumbled, falling onto the sofa, „Can you lend me money for the bus? I’ll treat you for coffee later, I forgot my money at home.“<br/>„Sure“ Cordelia shrugged, „Why didn’t you ask your fling, though?“<br/>„He was asleep when I left, duh“, Whizzer lied.</p>
<p>„Well then, because I’m an amazing best friend, I will make you your morning coffee while Mendel tells you about his date yesterday,“ Cordelia now grinned and handed him the phone, before she walked into the kitchen.<br/>Of course, he couldn't tell her about the okay-ish coffee he already had at Marvin’s.</p>
<p>„Spill, Mend,“ Whizzer called out.<br/>The psychiatry major let out a sigh.<br/>„Alright, but don’t laugh, alright?“<br/>He chuckled, „I promise.“<br/>„So, I picked her up at her dorm room, and she looked <em>amazing</em>, I really wondered how she always manages to be the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. And then I noticed: I just said that out loud.“<br/>Whizzer had to suppress laughter because that was a classic Mendel.<br/>„Ahem, go on.“<br/>„I went full gentleman, I opened the car door for her, all that. And on our way to the movie theater, she took my arm while we were walking down the street, and I turned into a stuttering mess.“</p>
<p>Whizzer remembered how he linked arms with Marvin yesterday. Not to mention how Whizzer took his hand in his apartment. Marvin did pull his hand away, but only after a few seconds.<br/>It had felt nice.</p>
<p>„So when I paid for the tickets and the popcorn, she said she’d pay for dinner. And I said <em>Yeah, we’ll see about that</em>.“<br/>„Smooth, Mend, nice one.“<br/>By now, Delia had returned from the kitchen, holding to damping mugs of hot coffee. </p>
<p>„So afterward, at dinner, I insisted on paying as well. And after a while, she gave up and let me, but then she said, that she will pay the next time we go out together. Guys, that means there will be a second time!“<br/>„Of course there is a second time, Honey,“ Cordelia said, smiling, „See, everything went just fine.“</p>
<p>Suddenly, Mendel seemed to jump up from what Whizzer assumed his to be his bed, at least according to the noises on the other side of the line.<br/>„I have to hang up, guys, Trina is calling me,“ he said rushed and hung up without waiting for a response.</p>
<p>„It’s adorable, isn’t it?“ Delia chuckled and raised her coffee up to her mouth.<br/>„Almost makes me want a relationship. Only almost.“<br/>Whizzer pulled out his phone to check if his roommate replied to his text.</p>
<p>„I mean, Marvin is still available,“ Cordelia now grinned, „Charles told me about your little photo shooting. You were <em>begging on your knees</em>? Tell me more.“<br/>Whizzer shrugged.<br/>„The prompt was, to look for something boring and make it exciting. I mean, I slayed that, didn’t I?“<br/>„And what excites grumpy Marvin?“<br/>„Theater! Get that boy on a stage and he literally starts glowing.“</p>
<p>„Sounds like you enjoyed the time with him,“ Cordelia pointed out, setting the mug aside.<br/>„Well, I like photography. And it turned out to be a good shot. Good time investment, that’s all.“<br/>„Sure, Jan.“<br/>„Oh my God, don’t <em>Sure, Jan</em> me. I never said I don’t like Marvin, he just doesn’t like me.“<br/>His roommate didn’t reply yet.</p>
<p>„I don’t think he doesn’t like you. I think, he doesn’t know how to deal with you,“ Delia said.<br/>„Maybe. But I mean, it doesn’t matter, right? I don’t do relationships. Not my thing, you know that.“<br/>The Blonde shrugged.<br/>„That’s what you say until you develop feelings for someone. And you might not like it, but that will happen someday.“<br/>Whizzer huffed.<br/>„Can’t I just enjoy my single life for another 20 years? I don’t really want to deal with feelings, they make this complicated.“</p>
<p>Delia looked at her best friend.<br/>„Whizz’, you are allowed to fall in love. You know that, right?“<br/>„Of course I do. I love my mother, I love my sisters, I love you and Mendel.“<br/>„That’s not what I mean and you know that. Listen, I’m not saying you <em>have</em> to marry the next guy you see, I’m just saying that you can allow yourself to feel romantic attraction. It’s actually pretty nice.“</p>
<p>Whizzer remained silent, drinking his coffee slowly.<br/>Then, „When did you become an expert?“<br/>„Uhh, have you seen my hot girlfriend?“ Cordelia laughed, „If I’d have denied my feelings for her, I wouldn’t be as happy as I am right now. Yes, I was afraid to get hurt. So is Mendel right now. But it might be worth it. You know, scratch that, it <em>is</em> worth it.“<br/>Again, Whizzer didn’t respond. A pretty rare event, actually.<br/>It was Cordelia, who was the first one to speak again.</p>
<p>„Maybe I’m just over-interpreting the whole thing with you and Marvin, for the stories sake. I just want you to be happy because I love you too. And I don’t think, suppressing feelings makes you happy for a long time.”<br/>Whizzer smiled weakly, as his best friend took his hand and squeezed it lightly.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0020"><h2>20. I don't want your jacket!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>For the first time, it is <em>not</em> Whizzer who asks for help.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Whizzer finished racquetball practice on Wednesday night, he would have preferred if he could have just gone straight to bed. But no, he had homework due to the next day, and because Whizzer was a big procrastinator, he didn’t finish it yet.<br/>In detail, he had to write about the photo he took of Marvin. The task also demanded a short essay additional to the photograph, where the students were supposed to explain the meaning of the picture and shit. While Whizzer loved photography, he hated writing these essays.</p>
<p>At least there wouldn't be his roommate, who got mad at Whizzer when he drummed his fingers on the desk while thinking about how to phrase the next sentence. That guy decided to stay over at his girlfriend’s apartment again, on a Wednesday night, for some reason.<br/>But Whizzer couldn't care less about that. He really just wanted to walk back to his dorm as quickly as possible, jump under the shower, write that dumb essay and go to bed.</p>
<p>He pulled his phone out, already untangling his headphones with the other hand when a real surprise was shown on the screen.<br/>Marvin called him, two times, about 15 minutes ago.<br/>Whizzer decided to text him, asking why Marvin would call him because Whizzer could not really think of a reason. Maybe he wanted to hook up, Whizzer though amused, but he knew that wouldn't be the reason.</p>
<p>But instead of responding to his text with another text message, like any sane person would do, he called Whizzer again.</p>
<p>„Marvin, it’s so great to hear your lovely voice again. What’s up, honey pie?“<br/>He could hear him groan on the other side of the line.<br/>„I need your help. You still owe me, remember?“<br/>Marvin sounded stressed out.<br/>„Marv, take a deep breath,“ Whizzer gave back, „What’s up? Are you alright?“</p>
<p>„I need to crash in your room. It’s a long story, I’ll tell you when I’m at your room. Just… Tell me your room number, I’m fucking freezing.“<br/>Whizzer needed two seconds to process what Marvin just said.<br/>„Okay,“ he then said plainly.<br/>„Oh thank God,“ Marvin mumbled, „What’s your room number?“<br/>„Where are you right now?“ Whizzer asked instead.<br/>„Parking lot. I’ll come to your room if you give me the number.“<br/>„I just had practice, I’ll come to pick you up. Be there in 5.“<br/>He knew that Marvin would have something to complain about that, so he just hung up and made his way to the parking lot.</p>
<p>When he arrived there (it took two songs), Marvin was the only person around. Which did make sense, since nobody would just hang around in the parking lot at 10pm on a Wednesday night, especially with these temperatures.<br/>„Fucking finally,“ Marvin greeted him groaning, „I’m freezing to death out here.“<br/>He really looked like he did. He was shivering, his teeth were chattering. Not a surprise, he didn’t have a jacket, he only wore some ugly plaid shirt, which he already had buttoned up.<br/>„I was walking at my gayest pace,“ Whizzer defended himself, already taking off his jacket, „What’s the matter?“<br/>„What the fuck, I don’t want your jacket,“ Marvin spat as Whizzer held the piece of clothing towards the other man.<br/>„Oh my God, stop whining, you’re shaking like a chihuahua, take the fucking jacket.“</p>
<p>After he took another deep breath, shivering again, he finally took it.<br/>„Thank you,“ he muttered, „Can we go?“<br/>„So, what happened?“ Whizzer asked as they started their way to the dormitories.<br/>„My car won’t start. I think it’s the battery. I called the breakdown service, but they said they won’t be here for another two hours. I have an important test tomorrow, I was studying until just now, and I just wanted to drive home to get enough sleep,“ Marvin explained, pulling his arms around himself.<br/>Whizzer nodded, „So now you need someplace on campus to crash?“</p>
<p>The finances major made a noise of agreement.<br/>„Charlotte is at Cordelia’s, of course. And Trina has her roommate.“<br/>„You know that I have a roommate, too, right?“ Whizzer asked.<br/>Marvin raised his hand to his forehead.<br/>„Shit, I forgot. Is he okay with it?“</p>
<p>„He’s staying over at his girlfriend’s place again. You’re lucky. He hates it when I bring guys into our dorm room.“<br/>Whizzer grinned.<br/>„Good thing, I’m not one of those guys,“ Marvin stressed once more.<br/>„You’ll need to share the bed with me, though,“ Whizzer made clear, „He’d kill me if he knew that somebody slept in his.“<br/>Marvin let out a quiet sigh.<br/>„Alright, it’s better than sleeping in the freezing car,“ he then said, „Wouldn’t be the first time.“<br/>He only mumbled the last part, more for himself then for Whizzer.<br/>„But we’re both sober this time,“ the photography major added, much to the other man’s shock.</p>
<p>„You remember that?“<br/>„Yeah.“<br/>„Do you remember anything else?“</p>
<p>Whizzer totally knew that Marvin wanted to know if he remembered their almost-kiss.<br/>„No, I just know that I wouldn’t sleep on the sofa because it literally feels like laying on the concrete,“ he lied.<br/>Marvin nodded, then he looked at his shoes.</p>
<p>„Aren’t you cold?“ he asked after a few moments of silence.<br/>Whizzer shook his head, „I’m still pretty heated up from racquetball practice. You seem to need the jacket more.“<br/>„Racquetball?“ Marvin asked, tilting his head slightly, „I didn’t know you play that.“<br/>„Well, it’s not like you had any reason to know, I never talked about it,“ Whizzer shrugged, „It helps me to relief stress. If I’m mad at someone, I just imagine the ball to be their head.“<br/>Marvin let out a laugh, much to Whizzer’s surprise.<br/>„Maybe I should also find some sport to help me with stress relief.“</p>
<p>„You want to join me next week?“ Whizzer asked out of the blue. He didn’t even know why. The words just came out of his mouth, without him having any control over it.<br/>The other man remained silent for a few seconds.<br/>„Yeah, maybe,“ he then said, not looking at Whizzer, the gaze still pointed towards the ground, „I’ll check if I’m free.“</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0021"><h2>21. You can finally have your sweatshirt back now!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Whizzer wants to work on his assignment, but Marvin would rather inspect his glasses.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„Welcome,“ Whizzer said, opening the door, „Make yourself a home.“<br/>Marvin stepped inside and looked around in the room. Whizzer’s side of the room was not exactly what one would describe as clean and tidy. Not that it was dirty, it was just some clothes laying around, his desk was messy and he didn’t bother to make his bed this morning.<br/>The shorter man peeled himself out of Whizzer’s jacket and hung it onto the coat hook next to the door.</p>
<p>„Uh, I still have to do some homework, so you can just go to sleep. I’ll try to keep the noise down,“ Whizzer then said, pointing towards his bed.<br/>„Thanks,“ Marvin said quietly and hesitantly sat down on the mattress.</p>
<p>„Hey, you can finally have your sweatshirt back now!“ Whizzer exclaimed, walking over to the wardrobe, „I, uhm, I washed it.“<br/>Marvin took the clothing from the other man’s hand, a slight smile on his lips.<br/>„Thank you, Whizzer.“<br/>„Or would you rather rip it off my marvelous body?“ Whizzer winked.<br/>„I’m good,“ Marvin gave back, but he didn’t roll his eyes like expected. Instead, he chuckled, much to Whizzer’s surprise.</p>
<p>In the small bathroom, Whizzer looked at himself in the mirror. What was up with Marvin? Why was he behaving so weird? Where was his annoyed moan? Why didn’t he roll his eyes? What was up with that?<br/>Without him reacting annoyed or mad, Whizzer’s playful flirting felt so serious. As if he was really hitting on Marvin, or even worse as if he had any interest in actually dating.</p>
<p>What the heck went into Whizzer when he asked Marvin to join him for racquetball next Wednesday night? He didn’t even ask Delia or Mend to join him, ever.</p>
<p>When Whizzer turned on the shower and stepped under it, he let out a deep breath. He probably just needed to be boned again. His last fling was, what, two weeks ago? Of course, his brain would start to play tricks.<br/>When Cordelia’s words appeared in his head, he shoved them aside and instead started to think about his assigned essay. Which would be about Marvin, for the most part.<br/>Oh, for fuck’s sake.</p>
<p>The finances student, however, still seemed to be awake when Whizzer, now wearing a t-shirt and boxers, emerged from the bathroom. Usually, Whizzer just slept topless, but he figured it might make Marvin uncomfortable again. Jesus Christ, when did he start caring about that?<br/>The man in Whizzer’s bed was looking at his phone, but he looked up when the taller man re-entered the room. His gaze lingered on Whizzer’s body for a few seconds.<br/>„Oh my God, you are totally checking me out!“ Whizzer called out, laughing at Marvin’s obvious stare.<br/>„What the fuck, I’m not!“ Marvin quickly looked back onto his phone, „I was just… staring into space.“<br/>The taller man let out a huff.<br/>„Of course.“</p>
<p>Sitting down on his desk, Whizzer put on his glasses. He already took out his contacts before he went into the shower. Of course, Marvin had to point that out.<br/>„Since when do you need glasses?“ he asked, now sitting up in the bed.<br/>„Eighth grade or so, I think,“ Whizzer gave back, opening a blank document on his laptop.<br/>„I never saw you wearing glasses.“<br/>„The secret is called <em>contact lenses</em>.“<br/>„No shit, Sherlock,“ Marvin didn’t sound half as annoyed as Whizzer expected him to be after his comment, „But you never took your lenses out when you slept in my apartment.“</p>
<p>Whizzer shrugged.<br/>„I don’t wear them when I go out to get drunk. I just need them to, well, see faces properly.“<br/>„And you don’t need that when you go clubbing?“<br/>„Guess why I let you take me home the first night,“ Whizzer turned around and winked.<br/>„Asshole.“<br/>„Nerd.“<br/>Still, Marvin did not seem pissed off. And it drove Whizzer nuts.</p>
<p>„Why don’t you wear your glasses more often?“ Marvin asked after a few minutes.<br/>„Because they are ugly, obviously,“ Whizzer explained.<br/>„I don’t think they’re ugly.“<br/>„You don’t even see them properly, they are ugly from near.“<br/>„Then move your ass over here and let me look at them <em>from near</em>.“<br/>Marvin mocked Whizzer’s voice.</p>
<p>„I’m trying to work, Marvin,“ Whizzer turned back to the computer.<br/>„You’re staring at a blank page.“<br/>„I’m thinking about what I want to write! And you keep distracting me!“<br/>He heard some motion behind his back, and suddenly Marvin stood next to him.<br/>„Didn’t you say you had some important test tomorrow, so you needed to go to bed early?“ Whizzer asked as he tried to keep focusing on the white document on the screen.<br/>„Who are you, my mother?“ Marvin asked unimpressed, „I just wanted to take a look at these <em>hideous</em> glasses, as you say.“<br/>With those words, he took the glasses from Whizzer’s face.</p>
<p>„I need them to work!“ Whizzer protested halfheartedly but eventually turned towards the shorter man, who was now leaning at the desk. He was holding the glasses up to his face, his eyes squeezed together as he was inspecting them.<br/>„Exactly what I expected,“ he then said, nodding, „They look like fucking glasses and you are being a drama queen.“<br/>„Ouch, Marvie, that hurt,“ Whizzer deadpanned, „Can I have them back now?“</p>
<p>„Fine, I mean, I don’t want to distract you any further,“ Marvin sighed, a slight smile on his lips. Then he leaned down and placed the glasses back on Whizzer’s face, much to Whizzer’s surprise, who already has his hand outstretched.<br/>Both men looked at each other for what felt like half an eternity. Marvin had freckles, why didn’t Whizzer notice them until now? They were not really prominent, actually, they were barely visible. But they were there, framing his nose. Maybe they would start standing out more when the seasons changed again? It was almost winter, after all. Maybe in summer, they would be more noticeable.</p>
<p>The last time they were that close was when Whizzer tried to kiss him. Except that he now could actually see and think straight, but Whizzer was not really sure if that was an advantage right now.<br/>Things could be so easy, he could just lean upward like he did last time, and maybe Marvin wouldn't pull back. He had no reason to, Whizzer was not drunk this time.<br/>But because he was not drunk, he also knew the consequences that a kiss could (and would) have. Maybe they’d fuck and what would be then? Marvin would be incredibly awkward about it, maybe he’d get his hopes up.<br/>But Whizzer didn’t have any feelings for him, didn’t he? So, if he didn’t have any feelings, why was he thinking about kissing the other man?</p>
<p>„Now I know how you feel all the time,“ Marvin mumbled.<br/>„What?“<br/>„Looking down at me.“</p>
<p>The moment was over. Marvin straightened his back again, blinking a few times as he looked anywhere but at Whizzer.<br/>„It’s not my fault you’re so short,“ Whizzer defended himself, „I was just born with the gift of being tall and gorgeous.“<br/>„I’m not short, I’m of average height,“ Marvin responded, crossing his arms, „And you’re cocky.“<br/>„I doubt both statements. Didn’t you want to sleep?“</p>
<p>Marvin look down and shook his head, cracking a smile.<br/>„Good night, Whizzer,“ he then said, walking back towards the bed.</p>
<p>Maybe it had been a good decision not to remind Marvin of Mendel’s offer to give him a ride sometime if he needed one.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>[…] The photograph mainly focuses on passion and excitement. Every person has this one thing that excites them more than anything else and brings out a side of them, which they don't show on a normal basis. Even the most boring person one could possibly imagine has this one thing.<br/>Shown is an ordinary man, who appears to be rather low-key (not to say boring) during everyday life. After bringing him onto a stage, turning on the spotlights and opening the curtain, however, he practically started glowing. Yet, the man had to be convinced to step onto the stage in the first place, he would have not chosen to do so if there hadn’t been the need. (In this case, a friend’s request.)<br/>So, maybe some people just need a slight push towards the thing that excites them the most, to live their lives fulfilled and happy. […]</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Whizzer turned his head to look at Marvin, who fell asleep about 20 minutes ago.<br/>Maybe he just needed a slight push towards the thing that excited him the most. Or, well, whatever Marvin did to him.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I felt like back in school when I wrote the second last paragraph. God, I'm so glad I don't go to high school anymore...</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0022"><h2>22. Four years from that day</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marvin has enough.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Mostly character study i guess?? It's actually one of my favorite chapters in the whole fic.</p><p>Enjoy and stay safe!</p><p>TW: the f slur</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Marvin decided, he had enough.<br/>
He had spent large parts of his life in denial, he was 21 now, this had to come to a stop.</p><p>When he was 12 years old, he first started to question if something was wrong with him. Why didn’t he have these crushes on the girls in his class, as all the other boys had? Why didn’t he have crushes at all?<br/>
Well, turns out he had crushes, he just didn’t know that you could be a boy and still like another boy. He started to connect the dots when he was 14. And he really did not like the fact. It wasn’t like he had any negative feelings towards gay <em>people</em>, that was not the case at all. It was more of a problem with the terminology.<br/>
Bullies in middle school used being gay as an insult for years, and that did not exactly leave it as a pleasant thing in little Marvin’s mind. And now he’d be one of them? One of these <em>fags</em>? No way.</p><p>He never told his parents about his worries, he didn’t even tell them about the bullies in middle school. And his parents never mentioned queer people when they sat together at the dinner table.<br/>
They never said anything against them, they just didn’t mention them. Because nobody brought them up. Why would Marvin bring them up, anyway? He avoided the topic as best as he could. And Jason was still too little to ask questions about it.<br/>
Well, once he told Marvin about his friend from kindergarten who had two moms. He didn’t ask questions, he just mentioned it casually while he told his older brother about his day.</p><p>Later in bed, he wondered if Jason would just casually mention his gay brother to his friends. He seemed not to be bothered by queer people. His little brother, that precious (and annoying) little soul, he would still love Marvin.<br/>
But would his parents have problems with it? He wasn’t quite sure, because they didn’t seem to have an open opinion about it. But it would have been weird to just walk up to his parents in the morning and ask ‚So, what is your opinion on gay people? Asking for a friend.‘</p><p>When he started high school and befriended Trina, he thought about if he might be bi. After dating Trin for five weird weeks, he had the answer. And he was still in denial about it. And the worst part was, that he couldn't really tell why the hell he had that big of a problem with it.<br/>
Sure, there were a few assholes in the hallway who didn’t seem to get tired of stressing that homosexuality was a disease. But well, they also said some sexist and racist shit, so what did they even know? They were seniors when Marvin was in his freshman year, so they weren’t even around for long.</p><p>Christ, being gay really wasn’t that big of a deal. A shitload of people in his high school was gay, hell, this was New York.<br/>
One day, 17-year-old Marvin was alone in the house, he stood in front of the bathroom mirror and took three deep breaths. He opened his eyes, looked at his reflection.<br/>
„You’re gay. And that’s fine,“ he told himself. Then he burst out into tears and sobbed for the next 30 minutes.</p><p>Today, four years from that day, Marvin stood in the bathroom of his own apartment, staring at his reflection.<br/>
„You’re gay. And that’s fine,“ he told himself again. He didn’t burst out into tears this time.<br/>
He continued to talk to his reflection after he took another deep breath.<br/>
„You might or might not have feelings for some cocky prick who you accidentally befriended through Charles and Trin.“</p><p>Weight fell off his chest, a weight that had been there since Thursday morning when he woke up next to Whizzer in his dorm room.</p><p>His phone’s alarm clock woke him up, but Whizzer was still asleep, no wonder, that guy slept like a rock.<br/>
Last time he woke up in the same bed as the other man, he fled as quickly as he could. But this time, he took a moment to look at him. He had a few minutes until he had to get to his test, and he’d rather spend these minutes in the warm bed than in the noisy classroom.<br/>
Whizzer’s hair was messy, some rare sight. Marvin swore, even last week Whizzer must have somehow done his hair before he entered the kitchen. His face looked so relaxed, but not that he looked tense when he was awake.<br/>
Marvin prayed that Whizzer wouldn't wake up right now. It would be hard to explain, why exactly he just laid in bed, staring at the sleeping man next to him.<br/>
Maybe Whizzer would have just kissed him, instead of asking questions. The night before, he had this look in his eyes, the same one he had when he sat in Marvin’s bathroom and intended to kiss him.</p><p>But Whizzer didn’t kiss him the night before, and Marvin was glad, actually.<br/>
Because this time, he wouldn't have pulled away, and that would have made things ridiculously complicated.<br/>
Wiping his thoughts aside, Marvin carefully climbed over the man next to him and got dressed.</p><p>Now, on Friday, he finally allowed himself to think about whatever he might or might not feel for Whizzer. And he won’t deny feelings anymore, this seriously had to stop.<br/>
It was time to face reality, and his reality was, he was a gay man who developed feelings for some pretty boy who was most likely to be afraid of commitment.</p><p>His thoughts got interrupted by the doorbell.<br/>
Marvin threw one last look into the mirror, furrowing his brows.</p><p>Who should that be? It was almost 10pm.<br/>
The answer was: Trina. Well, Trina stood in front of the rest of the group when Marvin opened the door.</p><p>„We’re going clubbing again, you’ll be joining us, and we’re getting ready at your apartment!“ she announced.<br/>
„Why didn’t you just text me?“ Marvin asked.<br/>
„You wouldn’t have opened the door, obviously. Will you let us in?“</p><p>The finances major let out a sigh but stepped aside.<br/>
„Sure, welcome to my home, everybody.“</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0023"><h2>23. More than three people</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marvin thinks about everything that changed in the last few weeks. Whizzer does his magic, too.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Remember when I wrote 7k words about a night out and its aftermath?<br/>This time it's gonna be 10k on multiple chapters, so beware for that! :^)</p><p>I wrote this when I sat in quarantine in China and missed going out with my friends back home. Now I am back home and I still can't go clubbing with my friends. But Marvin can, so enjoy this chapter!!!</p><p>Stay safe y'all!!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Cheering, the others entered the small apartment. Trina, Cordelia, and Charlotte headed straight to the bathroom, carrying a bag full of what Marvin assumed to be makeup. Whizzer went into the kitchen to get a bottle opener for the bottle of wine he held in his hands.<br/>„We’re the designated drivers for the night,“ Mendel informed him, „Such a shame we can’t drink, right?“<br/>He sounded highly ironic. Marvin remembered that Whizzer said something about Mendel becoming even more awkward when he drank, so he was probably just as glad as Marvin was.<br/>„Oh, no,“ Marvin deadpanned, „Sounds awful.“</p><p>At least Marvin didn’t have to fear to get drunk and confess anything he’d regret later.<br/>Mendel and Marvin settled down in the living room. The psychiatry major told him that the girls (and Whizzer) knocked at his dorm room out of the blue, just like they did with Marvin. Apparently, the idea was formed during a phone call between Trina, Cordelia, and Whizzer. Charlotte got dragged along by Delia and Trin.<br/>Marvin asked himself when their two groups merged into one. He couldn't say that he didn’t enjoy it, though. Since high school he only had Trin as his only real friend, Charles joined them in college.<br/>And now suddenly he was part of a group of six? What a wild concept.</p><p>The girls were heard giggling in the bathroom, he was talking with Mendel about high school (whenever Marvin mentioned Trina, Mendel seemed highly interested in every little detail) and where was Whizzer again?<br/>Anyway, Marvin’s apartment hadn’t been this alive in a long time. Maybe never. Now that he thought about it, the only people to ever enter his apartment had been Jason, Trin and Charles, and Whizzer. His parents knew where he lived, but they didn’t really come over for a visit.<br/>Had there ever been more than three people at the same time in here?</p><p>„Hard to believe, but I found something for Marvin to wear! Marv, your party outfit is waiting for you on your bed,“ Whizzer announced, entering the living room. So that’s where he’d been.<br/>„You’re going to make it a habit to just open my wardrobe and snoop in there, won’t you?“ Marvin asked and turned his head towards the taller man.<br/>„Well, I couldn’t let you go out like this,“ Whizzer pointed at the clothes Marvin was currently wearing, „You should be grateful, finding items in there that actually go along is some hard work.“<br/>„Ouch, that hurt“ Marvin gave back unimpressed and got up from the sofa.</p><p>By now, he wasn’t even bothered by Whizzer going through his stuff. Okay, maybe a bit. But when Whizzer looked at him so proudly, he couldn't really be mad.<br/>Christ, he really had a thing for him, didn’t he?</p><p>The clothes Whizzer picked out looked fine at first sight. But they weren’t exactly was Marvin would wear on a regular day. In fact, he didn’t remember wearing those jeans once. Charles bullied him into buying them about 10 months ago, and since then they were in his closet, waiting to be worn but never picked. Except for now.<br/>The thing that surprised Marvin the most, was the tie that was placed on the light gray button-up. Why the hell would Whizzer want him to wear a tie?</p><p>Marvin closed the bedroom door to change, even though he knew that a certain person would just barge in anyways.<br/>The photography major <em>did</em> barge in, but Marvin was almost finished and just had to button up the last few buttons of the shirt. But he refused to wear the tie, he just wouldn't do that.<br/>„Looking good, Marv,“ Whizzer wolf-whistled, „Don’t you feel fucking invincible, wearing something other than flannel shirts?“<br/>„I don’t know,“ Marvin gave back sincerely, glaring at himself in the mirror, „But I think I’ll be fine for one night.“<br/>„Just one thing missing,“ the man reminded him, picking up the tie from his bed.<br/>„Please don’t make me wear it, I’ll probably get stuck somewhere and just die.“</p><p>„Not into choking? Noted.“<br/>Marvin rolled his eyes, but when he looked back at Whizzer he saw that the man already made a step towards Marvin, now putting the tie around the shorter man’s neck. He tried not to look at his lips as Whizzer knotted the tie for him.</p><p>„You got the stain out,“ Marvin pointed out instead, his gaze attached to Whizzer’s dress shirt. It was the same one he wore that first night when everything started.<br/>„I know how to use a washing machine, you know,“ Whizzer gave back, highly focused in knotting, „Surprised?“<br/>„A bit,“ Marvin played along.</p><p>He expected Whizzer to take a step back when he finished the tie knot. But well, it was Whizzer we’re talking about here, so obviously he didn’t.<br/>Instead, he took a final look at Marvin's appearance, a sly smile on his lips.<br/>„Perfect,“ he whispered, tucking a single curl behind the finances major’s ear.<br/>Marvin felt his skin tingle under the other man’s touch.</p><p>„Whizzer, are you gonna go all-natural today?“ Cordelia called out of the bathroom, causing both men in the bedroom to jerk slightly. Of course, she would wonder why Whizzer didn’t join them.<br/>„No, uh,“ the photography major seemed to be caught off guard and turned towards the ajar door, „I’m coming.“</p><p>Marvin let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding when Whizzer quickly left the room without looking back at him.<br/>Hell, this was going to be the death of him. Out of all people, of course, it just <em>had</em> do be him.</p><p>When he left the bedroom a few seconds later, still distracted by his own thoughts, he saw Charles, who just emerged from the bathroom to look at herself in the hallway mirror.<br/>„You look sharp!“ she said smiling, „Whizzer already announced on our way here that he wants to pick out your clothes for tonight.“<br/>„I feel weird,“ Marvin gave back, standing next to Charles and glancing at himself in the mirror again.</p><p>„Maybe you should let Whizzer pick out your outfits more often,“ Charlotte proposed grinning and put her arm around Marvin’s waist, leaning onto her best friend.<br/>„I’d love that!“ Whizzer called from the bathroom.<br/>„Thanks, I hate it!“ Marvin gave back and draped his arm over Charles’ shoulder, „Are you guys finished then? The sooner we leave, the earlier I can go back home.“<br/>„That’s really not how clubbing works, Marv.“<br/>The medical student chuckled and pulled out her phone to take pictures in the mirror. Marvin just gave in.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0024"><h2>24. It’s been two months!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A successful night out always starts with drinks.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After another 30 minutes and several photos later, the group was finally set to go. The other five all drove here in Mendel’s truck, now they would need to split up in two groups to drive to the club.<br/>„I’ll go with Mend!“ Trina announced. Obviously, since she and Mend were walking arm in arm since they left Marvin’s apartment complex.<br/>„Now that’s what I call a surprise!“ Delia giggled, „We’ll go with Marv, then.“<br/>Whizzer would drive with Mendel, as well.</p>
<p>On their way back, Mendel would take all of them back to campus, except for Marvin. Which gave Marvin the possibility to leave whenever the heck he wanted, but suddenly, surrounded by all of these people who he could now even call his friends, he didn’t even feel like leaving early.<br/>But maybe his mood would change when they reached the night club.</p>
<p>Turns out, it didn’t. During the car drive, Charles and Cordelia were chatting joyfully, Marvin laughed a few times together with them. The others were already waiting for them when they walked up the stairs to the entrance.<br/>„Thank God you guys are finally here now, I never felt so much like the third wheel!“ Whizzer called out dramatically and ran towards the three of them to fall around Cordelia’s neck.<br/>„He’s just exaggerating,“ Trina said laughing.<br/>„I’m really not,“ Whizzer gave back and shook his head.</p>
<p>Not even the sticky air and the loud music inside bothered Marvin much.<br/>„First: Drinks!“ Delia commanded when they got inside.<br/>„I don’t drink except I get invited,“ Whizzer emphasized on their way, „I’m hot, I don’t pay for my own drinks.“<br/>„I pay for the first round, drama queen,“ Delia said then.</p>
<p>The Blonde came back, carrying a tray with four tiny glasses filled with alcohol, as well as lemon slices and some salt. She also balanced two glasses of what seemed to be orange juice on it.<br/>Mentally, Marvin thanked Mendel for making the two of them drive.<br/>„Guys, to an amazing night out!“ Trina raised her glass and drank it in one go.<br/>„And I’d say that’s the last drink for little Trina tonight, nobody give her more,“ Charles ordered, „We all know what happened last time.“<br/>„At least this time, she has no purse to lose,“ Marvin said teasingly.</p>
<p>„Thank you for bringing that up, Marv,“ Trina said, turning towards her best friend and crossing her arms, „But now that you remind me, I could ask the DJ if I lost it somewhere around his table.“<br/>„You mean when you tried to climb onto it?“ Mendel grinned. <br/>„Let’s never bring that up again, thank you.“<br/>With that, she got up from her seat again, leaving the rest of the group behind at the bar.<br/>„Next round is on me,“ Charles announced and got up from her seat as well.</p>
<p>„So, Mend, spill!“ Whizzer prompted the psychiatry major, „What’s the deal between you two?“<br/>„We’re… going on dates,“ he admitted, slightly blushing, „That’s all, actually.“<br/>„Oh, come on!“ Delia said, „Did you kiss yet?“<br/>He shook his head.<br/>„Tonight’s the night, buddy,“ Whizzer determined, „From now on, for every day that you cannot proudly call her your girlfriend, you owe each one us one coffee.“<br/>„Hey, that’s unfair!“ Mendel protested.<br/>„It’s just the same as the girlfriend-counter!“ Delia threw in.</p>
<p>„What the heck is the girlfriend-counter?“ Marvin asked amused.<br/>„Whenever Delia called Charlotte her <em>girlfriend</em> instead of just saying her name, we would write it down, and when she reached 30, she had to buy us coffee.“<br/>Marvin laughed, „We should have done that with Charles as well.“</p>
<p>„What should you have done with me?“ said woman asked, returning to the table with three glasses of cola. (Marvin suspected rum in there, too)<br/>„They wrote down the times Cordelia used <em>girlfriend</em> instead of your name to talk about you and after 30 times, she had to buy them coffee.“<br/>„Good thing you and Trin are both weak and don’t drink coffee,“ the medical student gave back unimpressed and sat down again.</p>
<p>„Guys, you won’t believe what happened!“ Trina approached them again, but instead of sitting down again she just put her arms around Mendel’s neck from behind, leaning onto him as she was talking.<br/>„Based on the fact that you wanted to ask the DJ if he saw your bag, I would assume he knows where you lost it?“ Marvin proposed, taking a sip from his orange juice.</p>
<p>„Well, that’s not the thing you won’t believe,“ Trin said in defense, „I walked up to him and I didn’t even need to ask him for it, he looked at me and said that he <em>remembered</em> me. Its been 2 months!“<br/>„Trina, even I remembered you, and I stood several meters away from you,“ Mendel reminded her, turning his head slightly.<br/>„But I mean, I am definitely not the first person to get blackout-drunk in a nightclub.<br/>Anyway, I asked him about my bag. And he told that he found it that night and took it to his home, in case, and I quote: <em>the pretty lady comes back and asks for it</em>.“</p>
<p>„Congrats Trin, you got the DJ flirting with you!“ Charlotte laughed, „He sounds creepy. What did you say?“<br/>„Well, I told him that I’m taken, obviously. But he took it well.“<br/>Multiple pairs of eyes were suddenly pointed towards Mendel, who looked slightly surprised by what Trina just said.<br/>„Anyways,“ the biology major just continued talking, obviously not noticing the glances the group threw her apparently-boyfriend, „He said, I can pick up my bag at his apartment tomorrow at 3pm. Can you drive me?“<br/>With the last sentence, she looked at Mendel, who was currently taking a huge gulp from the orange juice in front of him. He nodded quickly, before swallowing and putting the glass back down, „Yeah! Yeah, sure, anything for you,“ he mumbled, in his usual awkward manner.</p>
<p>The woman smiled widely and straightened her back again, „Great. Hey, let’s go dancing everybody?“<br/>The rest of the group agreed, well, the Lesbians and Whizzer cheered enthusiastically, while Marvin just laughed at their reaction. Mendel still didn’t seem over what Trina just said.<br/>So, after finishing their drinks, the six of them moved over to the dance floor.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>God, I can't wait for the pandemic to end so I can go clubbing with my friends again, just to realize I still don't like clubbing.</p>
<p>Stay safe y'all! &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0025"><h2>25. The six of them</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Clubbing is all fun and games until jealousy kicks in.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Some good old angst incoming. Angst is kinda my speciality, so i don't even know how we got this far without it.</p>
<p>Enjoy and stay safe! &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Marvin still didn’t consider himself much of a dancer. At least when it came to night clubs.<br/>Back in high school, he’d learn some of the choreographies for the musicals they were playing, but just for himself and only so that nobody ever saw him doing so. He felt weird, moving his body in that way if he knew that people were watching him.</p>
<p>Yet, today he felt different. Not much, only a bit, but still different.<br/>It would be an exaggeration if one said, that Marvin felt totally comfortable with how he was moving, but at least he didn’t feel like he was the biggest fucking moron around.<br/>He wasn’t as carefree as the other’s (well, except for Mendel), but it was an upgrade to their last visit to the club. Besides, last time, he only spent ten minutes dancing, probably less.</p>
<p>Finally, Marvin understood why the others wanted to go partying to desperately. Maybe it had been about the alcohol and the flirting, but tonight was about the six of them, having a good time and celebrating their friendship, their relationships even.<br/>He could barely believe it, but the finances major genuinely had a good time.</p>
<p>Well, at least for some time.</p>
<p>After some dancing, it had been several songs, the group slowly split up. Well, technically, all of them were still on the dance floor, but they just slightly drifted apart.<br/>Currently, Marvin was dancing together with Trina, it kind of reminded him of their prom. Marvin would twirl his best friend and they’d laugh together, just like they did that night.<br/>Looking around, he tried to figure out where the others where. He could see the Lesbians dancing together a few meters from them, and he knew that Mendel went to use the restroom. The only person he couldn't find was a certain tall man.<br/>„Hey, do you know where Whizzer is?“ he asked Trina over the music.<br/>„I think he went back to the bar. Why? Longing for him?“ the biology major grinned at him.<br/>„What? No! I was just wondering,“ Marvin lied, „I think I’ll search for him, just to make sure he doesn’t get assaulted again.“</p>
<p>Squeezing himself through the dancing crowd, Marvin made his way towards the bar.<br/>He did partly worry about Whizzer, but he mainly just wanted to see him. Maybe talk to him in their teasing way, almost flirting.<br/>Marvin felt bold tonight, he might as well use it.</p>
<p>That was until he reached the bar and saw Whizzer sitting with some guy, who apparently bought him the drink he was holding in his hands.</p>
<p>If he was being honest with himself, he could have expected that. Whizzer did emphasize that he doesn’t pay for his own drinks. And anyway, just because he had an itty bitty crush on the photography student, that didn’t mean he had the right to get jealous because Whizzer got invited for drinks.<br/>But Marvin did. His good mood was blown away, and he quickly turned around to return to the others. Or maybe he should leave now?</p>
<p>Making his way back to Trina and Mendel, he was already phrasing an apology for leaving so soon, he suddenly felt somebody tapping his shoulder. Some naive part in him hoped for Whizzer, but Marvin knew that that was hardly possible, and he remained right.<br/>Instead of Whizzer, it just was some guy who eyed Marvin from hair to toe.<br/>„You’re hot,“ he noted, grinning mischievously.<br/>Marvin blinked twice, processing the thing a total stranger just said to him. But of course, Whizzer put out the clothes he was wearing, he shouldn’t be surprised by compliments.</p>
<p>„Thanks,“ he then brought out, not really knowing how to react. He didn’t get hit on often, how does one react in such a situation?<br/>„Wanna dance?“ the stranger asked.<br/>„Uh,“ why the heck not? Didn’t Trina tell him to just <em>roll</em> with certain things? Marvin felt highly uncomfortable whenever <em>any</em> person tried to flirt with him, so maybe it wasn’t even the guy who was creeping him out, maybe it was just the fact that he seemed interested in him?</p>
<p>Well, he was okay with Whizzer flirting with him, Marvin got used to that by now. Sometimes it was almost fun, and he actually enjoyed the attention the pretty boy gave him. When he picked up Whizzer from that bar and he was all smooth and flirty, Marvin felt that nice warmth in his body.<br/>But well, Whizzer sat together with some dude who bought him a drink and seemed to enjoy himself without Marvin, so maybe Marvin should just do the same.</p>
<p>„Yeah,“ the finance major nodded slowly, „Yeah, sure.“<br/>And that’s how Marvin Philipps ended up dancing with a total stranger.</p>
<p>It was not so bad after all. Fine, it was kind of what Marvin hell expected to be like.<br/>This was totally different to dancing with his friends, suddenly he felt all weird and uncomfortable with himself and his surroundings again. His dance partner, however, did seem to enjoy himself, throwing flirting glanced towards Marvin from time to time. Every now and then he tried to step even closer to Marvin, who already felt kind of cramped. Marvin would just take another step back.<br/>That worked out just fine until the felt the wall on his back.</p>
<p>He really appreciated Trina for trying to help him, but he made a mental note to never follow her advice again. When the guy, who just bluntly ignored Marvin’s obvious discomfort, tried to approach him again, he almost pressed himself against the wall, scanning the surrounding for one of his friends to rescue him.</p>
<p>„Hey, I don’t think your date enjoys your company right now,“ a loud voice appeared behind Marvin’s dance partner, causing him to turn around.<br/>Behind him stood Whizzer, who glared down at the man, before he looked at Marvin with a questioning look in his eyes.<br/>„Wanna go outside for a sec?“ the photography major asked, offering Marvin his hand.<br/>„Thank God,“ Marvin just mumbled, took Whizzer’s hand and fled the situation.</p>
<p>Whizzer’s hand was soft and warm, which didn’t really surprise the other man. He probably moisturized his hands on a regular basis, he seemed like the kind of person to do so. Maybe he also went to manicure occasionally, Marvin once noticed him wearing nail polish when they had the movie night over at Cordelia’s place.</p>
<p>However, as soon as they were outside the crowd, he quickly let go of Whizzer’s hand, because their hands together felt so awfully right, that he couldn't bear getting his hopes up any second longer than he had to.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0026"><h2>26. One cigarette</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Whizzer finally gets it.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I am so excited to be uploading this chapter!!! SO without further ado:</p>
<p>Enjoy and stay safe!!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Marvin held onto the cold metal of the handrail, releasing a deep breath. Then he took out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter from his back pocket.<br/>„You okay?“ Whizzer asked him, leaning onto the handrail as well, as he watched Marvin fiddling one cigarette out of the pack.<br/>„Yeah, I…“ he avoided looking at Whizzer, „Thanks, I guess.“</p>
<p>The taller man shrugged.<br/>„I mean, just returning the favor, right? Do you want me to take you home with me now?“ Whizzer laughed, but he stopped quickly when Marvin didn’t join, „You looked like you were about to freak out. Of course, I stepped in.“<br/>„Whatever. Just… Thank you,“ Marvin took the first drag from his cigarette, „You don’t need to wait for me out here, you can go back inside.“</p>
<p>„It’s fine, I wanted to come out to get some fresh air, anyway.“<br/>„You say, standing right next to a smoker.“<br/>Marvin heard him chuckle.</p>
<p>„You know, I never see you smoking on campus. And there are no ashtrays in your apartment,“ Whizzer then noted.<br/>„I only smoke when I’m like <em>really</em> stressed. Charles made me stop for the most part, so that’s kind of our silent agreement.“<br/>Marvin thought back to their freshman year in college when Charlotte helped him to quit smoking, a habit he picked up back in high school to deal with pressure and self-doubts.</p>
<p>„So you’re only stressing out in night clubs?“<br/>„Duh,“ Marvin turned his head slightly and looked at Whizzer, „Not exactly my venue.“<br/>„You did seem to have a good time before.“<br/>Marvin inhaled another drag, „Moods change.“</p>
<p>„Why did you dance with that guy anyway? That’s not really your style, isn’t it?“<br/>The Brunette was eyeing him from the side.<br/>„Well, Delia and Charles were dancing with each other and I didn’t want to third-wheel Mend and Trin anymore.“<br/>„You could have looked for me.“<br/>„You seemed to have plenty of fun at the bar.“</p>
<p>His words sounded more bitter than Marvin intended them to be, but he decided not to give it any more attention. In silence, he turned his head back and looked down at the little square in front of the night club.<br/>„Oh.“<br/>Whizzer sounded surprised, even a little caught.<br/>Then, „Did you look for me?“<br/>The shorter man didn’t respond, he just shrugged.</p>
<p>„You know, you could have just come up to me and ask me to dance if you felt lonely or something.“<br/>He let out a sigh and flicked the finished cigarette to the ground before he stepped on it.<br/>„That’s not was this is about and you know it.“</p>
<p>Whizzer furrowed his eyebrows and tilted his head slightly, looking down at the man beside him.<br/>He let out a little gasp when he finally understood.<br/>„You were jealous!“ he called out, raising one hand to dramatically touch his own face.</p>
<p>„Yeah, so what?!“ Marvin snapped, crossing his arms. He didn’t dare to turn and look at Whizzer’s face again. He felt his own face flush and wished he had just stayed quiet.<br/>„Marv, that’s so adorable.,“ he heard Whizzer’s grin as he talked.<br/>„Fuck you! I can’t even believe I admitted it,“ Marvin mumbled and turned around to go back inside, „I’ll say goodbye to the others.“</p>
<p>„Marv, wait, please,“ based on the sound of his words, he was still smiling, „I don’t get why you’d be jealous. You had some guy to ask you to dance with him, I mean yeah, he got kinda creepy, but why are you jealous of me getting drinks paid? You’re driving, plus you don’t even like drinking.“</p>
<p>Marvin turned around and glared at the other man for a few seconds. Whizzer clearly misinterpreted what Marvin meant when he admitted being jealous. And Marvin wasn’t even sure if he wanted to correct him. So maybe he’d just play along with it.</p>
<p>„Well, I never get hit on, usually. I guess I’m just not interesting enough or something. You know what, it doesn’t matter, just forget what I said,“ he gave the lie a shot.<br/>„You never get hit on? Dude, I hit on you all the time!“<br/>Why would Whizzer mention that right now? Why would he mention it at all, it was one thing to do it and the other to say it out loud.<br/>„But that’s just what you do! That’s your thing. You flirt. You see another gay man and your program just starts itself.“</p>
<p>Again, Marvin was not good to hide his emotions while he spoke. A subtle undertone of sadness swung with his words, of course, he didn’t feel good about admitting that he was nothing else than another toy to Whizzer.</p>
<p>„Sorry to correct you, but that’s just not true,“ he responded calmly.<br/>„Of course it is! Why else would you hit on me? Like, I’m the most uninteresting human being you could ever imagine! You picked me as <em>something boring</em> for your project, remember?“<br/>Marvin’s voice cracked as he called those words out, almost yelling.</p>
<p>Whizzer stared at him, his head slightly tilted, his mouth a tat opened as he finally seemed to understand.<br/>„You’re not jealous of <em>me</em>,“ he then stated.<br/>„Whatever, who even cares,“ Marvin muttered and turned around once more, determined to leave now.<br/>„Wait,“ Whizzer said again and reached out for his wrist to prevent him from going.<br/>„Hell, what do you want now?“ Marvin spun around and looked up to the man with his best annoyed glance.</p>
<p>„I’m sober now,“ the taller man said slowly.<br/>„No you’re not, I saw you drinking wine at my apartment, and you had at least three drinks since we arrived here,“ Marvin corrected him, just for the sake of it.<br/>„But I mean I’m clearly not as drunk as I was last time,“ Whizzer continued.<br/>„Well, you didn’t throw up over the handrail yet.“<br/>„No, I mean I’m not as drunk as I was when you picked me up from the bar.“<br/>„Jesus Christ, what is your point?“</p>
<p>Whizzer didn’t answer verbally. He let go of Marvin’s wrist, just to cup his face with both of his hands and smash their lips together.</p>
<p><em>Oh</em>, Marvin thought, <em>That’s what he meant</em>.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0027"><h2>27. One thousand things</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marvin gives in. But Christ, what did he get himself into?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This one has been <em>so</em> much formatting, oh boooiiiiii.</p>
<p>Enjoy and stay safe!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>One thousand things were rushing through Marvin’s head. He was confused, happy, maybe slightly upset but he couldn't even tell why.<br/>He didn’t know what that was supposed to mean now. If he was just some fling for the night, or if Whizzer just wanted to see if he <em>could</em> have Marvin if he wanted to. But if he was really honest to himself, he didn’t even care.<br/>Because every thought rushing through his head got shattered when he felt Whizzer’s soft lips pressing against his own.</p>
<p>Marvin knew damn well how wrong this may be, and how he would just end up hurt afterward when he discovered that he was not more than just another fun night for the taller man.<br/>But it still felt so awfully right, and Marvin couldn't help but enjoy how the other man’s lips felt on his and how he pressed his body against his.<br/><em>Fuck it</em>, Marvin thought and buried his hands in Whizzer’s hair, pulling him closer. At least Whizzer now had his answer:<br/>Marvin would kiss him if he was sober.</p>
<p>As they deepened the kiss, Marvin shoved him back against the handrail, keeping him trapped in between the cold metal and his body. He didn’t seem to mind about that, letting out a muffled sigh as he moved one hand from Marvin’s face to his back, wrapping his arm around the shorter man.</p>
<p>At this point, Marvin stopped questioning all the decisions that led to this very situation. The only thing going on inside him now was hunger.</p>
<p>Whizzer pulled slightly back, „Wanna get out of here?“ he asked with a husky voice.<br/>„Yeah,“ Marvin nodded, catching his breath, „Yeah, let’s do that.“<br/>Whizzer smirked and pushed himself away from the handrail, causing Marvin to slightly stumble backward. But the photography major still had his arm wrapped around him, holding him safely.</p>
<p>„So we’re not saying goodbye to the others?“ Whizzer raised his eyebrows as they started walking to the parking lot.<br/>„They’ll be fine,“ Marvin decided without much thinking, „We’ll text them from the car.“<br/>„You seem a bit hurried, Marv,“ Whizzer teased him, leaning down and whispering the words into his ear.<br/>Marvin stopped in his tracks, grabbed the taller man by his shirt and pulled him down again, pressing a short but passionate kiss onto his lips. He felt Whizzer grin against his mouth.<br/>„Easy, tiger,“ the Brunette said chuckling after Marvin pulled away again.<br/>„Shut up before I change my mind,“ the man just gave back, trying to hide his own smile as they continued their walk to Marvin’s car.</p>
<p>Only seconds after both men got into the car, Whizzer started to attack Marvin’s neck with his mouth. An act that Marvin could have enjoyed if there hadn’t been a risk of leaving remains.<br/>„If you leave a hickey I will throw you out the car,“ he tried to stop Whizzer halfhearted, but the other man didn’t think of stopping what he was doing.<br/>„No, you won’t,“ he gave back relaxed, gave Marvin a short peck on the lips, and continued his former action.<br/>„Fine, I won’t,“ Marvin admitted, trying to keep his breathing normalized, which was not easy with Whizzer sucking on his neck, „But maybe I should focus on driving now, and I can’t really think straight with you doing… that.“</p>
<p>„Think gay then, why would you even try to think straight?“<br/>The finances major turned his head and directed the kiss to his lips again before he finally pulled away.<br/>Whizzer looked up to him with messed up hair (a rare sight) and red, swollen lips. And Marvin couldn't help but admire the view.<br/>„But the sooner I start driving, the sooner we’re back at my apartment,“ he proposed in a low voice, his gaze switching between the other man’s eyes and mouth.<br/>„Fine,“ Whizzer gave in, smirking slightly. He pressed one last kiss onto Marvin’s lips and then leaned back in the passenger seat.</p>
<p>What were they even doing here? If this thing blew up, it could cause some serious drama in their little group. Shit, maybe they should now tell the other’s that they were leaving.<br/>„Hey, can you send something into the group chat? Why we both left?“ Marvin asked after a few minutes.<br/>Whizzer didn’t answer but pull out his phone, then he seemed to type something in before he read it out loud.<br/>„I’m leaving, about to get boned. Love y’all,“ he read, grinning mischievously.<br/>„What the fuck, you didn’t send that yet, right?“ Marvin asked.<br/>„No, but that’s my excuse for the night. It’s not unrealistic, plus it’s not wrong.“</p>
<p>„But I need an excuse as well, asshole.“<br/>Again, Whizzer typed something.<br/>„Marvin and I are leaving, we’re about to bone. Love y’all,“ he said instead.<br/>„You are <em>not</em> going to send that,“ Marvin shook his head vehemently, „Just say that you didn’t feel good and I drove you home or some shit.“<br/>„Marvin, you are so <em>not</em> fun, I think I told you that a couple of times now, didn’t I?“<br/>„Well, you still seem to be pretty keen on me right now.“</p>
<p>Whizzer cracked a smile, re-typing the message again.<br/>„Hey guys, I’m not feeling so good, Marvin is driving me home now. You don’t need to worry about us, have a good night,“ he read out the final draft.<br/>Marvin just made a noise of agreement and nodded. He just hoped that the others were naive enough to believe them. He didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. Especially since he couldn't really say what <em>it</em> even was.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„Marv?“ Whizzer mumbled, his head leaned against the other man’s bare chest.<br/>„Hm?“ he responded, his eyes already closed.<br/>„You won’t leave to sleep on the sofa tonight, right?“<br/>Marvin chuckled.<br/>„No, I won’t.“<br/>„Good,“ Whizzer gave back, „You better still be here when I come back, I still need to remove my makeup.“<br/>And without waiting for any reaction, he jumped out of the bed again, leaving the bedroom. But not without turning around to see if Marvin looked at his ass.<br/>Which he totally did.</p>
<p>„I won’t help you this time,“ Marvin called after him, a smile on his lips.</p>
<p>He took a moment to look around in the dim bedroom. Both of their clothes were scattered all over the room, some of them already came off in the hallway. And both their phones were placed on the small nightstand next to the bed.</p>
<p>It was almost 4am, but Marvin didn’t check his phone since they were in the night club, so he wanted to see if the other’s responded to their made-up excuse.</p>
<p>He was surprised to actually find that they bought the lie. They just wished Whizzer to get well soon and thanked Marvin for taking care of him.<br/>Huh, that’d been easy.</p>
<p>But instead, Trina had texted him about 20 minutes ago.</p>
<p><strong>Trin:</strong> Mendel and I kissed! I’m v happy!!! :)))<br/><strong>Trin:</strong> Hope u had a good night, text me when u read this<br/><strong>Trin:</strong> We saw u dancing with some handsome guy before u left, btw ;)</p>
<p>Marvin let out a sigh. Of course, they saw him. He just hoped they didn’t see Whizzer saving him. Or him and Whizzer making out in front of the night club.<br/>Still, he did feel bad for not telling Trina anything. Being the talkative person she is, she told Marvin most of the stuff that was going on in her life. He was the first person to know about her feelings for Mendel, too.</p>
<p>And now Marvin discovered that he had a thing for Whizzer Brown. And he just <em>slept</em> with him.</p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> We were lying in the group chat, I didn’t bring Whizzer back to campus.<br/><strong>Me:</strong> We’re staying at my apartment.</p>
<p>He just typed it very quickly and hit sent before he would decide against it. He didn’t even expect Trina to be awake, maybe she already fell asleep. But she responded within seconds.</p>
<p><strong>Trin:</strong> Oh, did you have to take care of him again?<br/><strong>Trin:</strong> Is he ok tho?<br/><strong>Trin:</strong> That’s weird, he didn’t drink that much, I mea<br/><strong>Trin:</strong> OH MY GOD NO WAY<br/><strong>Trin:</strong> MARVIN????</p>
<p>The messages were followed by Trina calling. But Marvin declined.</p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> I can’t talk on the phone, he’s in the bathroom, he’ll come back any second.<br/><strong>Me:</strong> It just happened. I don’t know why I did it.<br/><strong>Me:</strong> It’s Whizzer, he won’t want to commit to a relationship in 1000 years. I’ll just end up hurt.<br/><strong>Trin:</strong> You want to date him?? Marvin what the hell, when did that happen??</p>
<p>He heard the squeaking of the bathroom door.</p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> I have to go, Whizzer is coming back.<br/><strong>Me:</strong> Let’s talk later?<br/><strong>Trin:</strong> TTYL, ly, sleep well<br/><strong>Trin:</strong> Use protection.</p>
<p>Marvin rolled his eyes and put the phone down again, just the second Whizzer re-entered the bedroom and threw himself back onto the bed.<br/>„The other’s wish you to get well soon,“ the theater nerd informed the Brunette, as he got under the covers again.<br/>„That’s adorable,“ he chuckled.</p>
<p>Whizzer turned his face towards Marvin and looked into his face for a few seconds. They were not far apart, not more than a few inches, but Marvin was unsure whether he was still allowed to kiss the other man, no matter how much he still wanted to.<br/>Technically, their <em>fun</em> was over, so there wasn’t really the need to get romantic.<br/>But Whizzer took that decision from him, leaning close and pressing a soft, slow kiss into his lips.<br/>When they parted again, he just smirked at Marvin, before turning over and now facing the wall.</p>
<p>„Good night, Marvin,“ he said, one could hear his yawning.<br/>„Good night, Whizzer,“ the theater nerd gave back, looking at the other man’s back.</p>
<p>„You are allowed to spoon me, you know?“ Whizzer noted after a few moments.<br/>And Marvin was happy to do so.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0028"><h2>28. Sounds fair</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The morning after.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>He had to admit, when he woke up the next morning, Whizzer was surprised to find Marvin next to him. He had expected the older one to jump out of the bed as soon as he woke up, fleeing into the kitchen to drink one or five cups of herbal tea.<br/>But when Whizzer opened his eyes, he still found himself in an embrace. He had turned in his sleep, now facing the man beside him, his was face buried in Marvin’s chest. He felt Marvin’s steady breath brush against his hair, his arm was wrapped around Whizzer’s waist.</p>
<p>Last night, Whizzer kissed Marvin. And he knew that Marvin wouldn't turn him down. So he just followed his guts, because it felt like the right thing to do, and because it felt <em>good</em>, not like one of his flings.<br/>And Marvin kissed him back. He kissed him with passion and hunger and lust, almost desperate. That was also a difference to his flings. Whizzer and his flings would just make out because it’s part of the foreplay.<br/>Kissing Marvin had felt like something finally went off inside of Whizzer. He even understood what Delia meant. Just <em>kissing</em> Marvin had been worth the mess of thoughts inside of Whizzer’s brain, that started the day he asked him to help him with the assignment. <br/>Let alone sleeping with him, but a gentleman never tells.</p>
<p>Whizzer felt content. It was ridiculous because it was really not a big deal, but just waking up in Marvin’s arms was a nice feeling. Maybe, just maybe, Whizzer could get used to it.<br/>But he didn’t quite know if Marvin would want that.</p>
<p>What a fucking cliche they were. Well, okay, maybe not exactly.<br/>Whizzer was pretty sure that Marvin had feelings for him. Set aside if sexually or romantically.<br/>But Whizzer also knew, that Marvin still dealt with accepting himself. He did not seem comfortable when he was talking about his sexuality or dating other men.<br/>So, who said that he was even ready for a relationship with him?<br/>Hell, when did Whizzer start to think about commitment? What did that guy with him?</p>
<p>Marvin shifted slightly, signing that he probably was about to wake up. Whizzer decided just to pretend like he was still asleep. Marvin would probably leave now, that was just his thing.<br/>But again, Whizzer’s expectations were proven wrong.<br/>Instead of jerking up and fleeing the room, Marvin pulled Whizzer closer to his body.</p>
<p>That did surprise the photography major, but not in a bad way.<br/>Letting out a light sigh, he snuggled closer, much to Marvin’s amusement. The older one let out a quiet laugh.</p>
<p>„Good morning, I guess,“ he then said.<br/>„Mornin’,“ Whizzer mumbled, „What’s the time? I slept like a stone.“<br/>„You always sleep like a stone, don’t act like that’s something special,“ Marvin just gave back and blindly reached out for one of the phones on the nightstand, „It’s 9:30, and Cordelia tried to call you.“<br/>„Why am I awake?“ Whizzer whined, „I didn’t even get close to my 8 hours of beauty sleep.“</p>
<p>Just when Marvin opened his mouth again, probably to make another sarcastic comment, Whizzer’s phone started to ring again.<br/>„Delia,“ Marvin announced, „She’s probably worried. Maybe you should pick up.“<br/>Whizzer, definitely not a morning person, let out a groan and heavy-heartedly sat up, out of Marvin’s embrace. The other man handed him the phone and sat up as well.<br/>„Hey Deli,“ Whizzer greeted his best friend, „’Sup?“<br/>„Hey Whizz, just checking in, how do you feel?“ Delia sounded concerned, and Whizzer couldn't help but feel a tiny bit bad for telling them that he left because he felt sick.<br/>In the meantime, Marvin had gotten up and threw on some clothes. Sadly, in Whizzer’s opinion, he had enjoyed the view.</p>
<p>„No, I’m fine. I just had a headache. You know, the annoying kind that you get out of the blue and only goes away when you go to bed?“<br/>„Glad to hear that. I was a bit worried yesterday, but I mean, at least you texted us where you went this time,“ he heard the Blonde chuckle on the other side of the line.</p>
<p>When Whizzer looked at Marvin again, the latter mouthed „I’ll be in the kitchen“, to which Whizzer responded with a nod.</p>
<p>„No need to worry, babe. I’m alright, I’ll probably sleep for another 3 hours and catch up with you later?“<br/>„Alright. See you. Oh and please remember me, the next time I see Marvin I have to give him a big hug because he took care of you again!“<br/>If she only knew.<br/>„I will. Bye, Deli,“ Whizzer said grinning and took the phone down.</p>
<p>He got dressed quickly (in his own clothes), then he decided to join Marvin in the kitchen.</p>
<p>„I made you coffee,“ finances major pointed at the mug that was set on the kitchen table. This time, he didn’t sit in his usual chair, instead, he leaned onto the kitchen unit, holding his own mug with both his hands.<br/>„Thank you,“ Whizzer cracked a smile and sat down on the table. He decided not to tell Marvin that that brand of instant coffee tasted like dishwater.</p>
<p>Silence filled the kitchen. It was not that kind of comfortable silence, instead, the room was filled with sort of an unknown tension.<br/>„Delia just wanted to see if I was alright,“ Whizzer broke the silence eventually after a few minutes.<br/>Marvin nodded, raising the mug to his mouth, „Makes sense, she’s really caring.“<br/>„And she wants me to remind her, to give you a huge hug because you took care of me again,“ Whizzer continued, a smirk on his face.</p>
<p>Marvin did not respond to that.<br/>„Are you alright?“ the photography major asked after another silent minute.<br/>The other man took a deep breath, setting the mug down.<br/>„Whizzer,“ he began slowly, „What… What happened last night?“<br/>Oh man, here we go.<br/>„We had sex. People do that sometimes. When they are attracted to each other,“ Whizzer gave back, mostly because he didn’t really know what else to say.</p>
<p>Marvin raised his hand and brushed some curls out of his face, taking another deep breath.<br/>„No, I mean Yes but…“ he faltered, „But that was a one-time thing for you, wasn’t it?“<br/>„Was it for you?“</p>
<p>Marvin avoided his gaze.<br/>„Just, answer the stupid question, please,“ he whispered, looking up to the ceiling.<br/>„Marv…“ Whizzer mentally prepared himself for admitting that this felt different than anything else he had ever done when Marvin yet interrupted him.</p>
<p>„I know,“ he groaned and rubbed one hand over his face, now looking onto the floor, „I know you’re <em>embracing</em> the single life. I know you don’t commit to anything or anyone, I know that, alright? I don’t know why I even asked. And I don’t know why I kissed you back, or why I slept with you, even though I know I’ll end up-“<br/>„Let’s try it.“</p>
<p>Marvin’s looked up from the floor, staring at Whizzer.<br/>„I’m sorry, what did you just say?“<br/>„Let’s try it,“ the taller man repeated himself, returning the look.<br/>That must have caught Marvin off-guard since he fell silent again.<br/>„We don’t have to, if you don’t want to,“ Whizzer said after some seconds, slightly confused by Marvin’s reaction, „It’s just… I don’t see you as another fling if that’s what you’re worried about.“</p>
<p>But Marvin quickly shook his head.<br/>„No! I just need a minute,“ he gave back, a smile creeping onto his face, „Are you being serious right now?“<br/>„Are you?“<br/>„Jesus Christ, can you stop asking me my own questions?“ Marvin asked, the smile now significantly wider.<br/>„I don’t know, can I?“ Whizzer joked and got up from the kitchen table, approaching the other man carefully before he continued talking, „See, let’s not put a name on it yet. We’ll see where it leads us. But if I’m being honest, I’d like to find out.“</p>
<p>Again, Marvin didn’t respond. He just looked at Whizzer with a wide smile, his eyes sparkling. Then, he leaned upwards, pressing a short kiss onto the taller man’s lips, as if he wanted to test what he was allowed to do. He pulled back after less than two seconds, staring into Whizzer’s eyes, almost daringly.</p>
<p>Just like last night, Whizzer cupped the other man’s face with his hands, planting another kiss onto his stupidly adorable smile.</p>
<p>„Okay,“ Marvin said breathlessly after they parted again, „Let’s try it.“<br/>„But you should know, I’m a goddamn queen, so you better treat me like one,“ Whizzer clarified.<br/>„Never would have guessed,“ the shorter man gave back grinning and rolled his eyes.<br/>„And I won’t kiss you after you smoked, that tasted gross. And it’s not good for you, I don’t support it.“<br/>„Sounds fair.“</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>man, there's gonna be so much disgusting fluff from now on.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0029"><h2>29. A good feeling</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The gang has coffee together. But Marvin and Trina don't like coffee, so they only got tea to spill.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Just in case you don't already do that, here is a chapter that will make you miss hanging out with your friends!</p>
<p>Enjoy and stay safe! :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>On Tuesday afternoon, Mendel and Trina asked the others to meet them in their favorite cafe on campus. Everyone knew what this was about, obviously, they wanted to announce that they were now officially boyfriend and girlfriend. Which was adorable and cheesy at the same time.<br/>Still, everyone agreed to come together.</p>
<p>So, around 4pm, Whizzer sat together with the lesbians, waiting for Trina, Mendel, and Marvin to arrive. Charlotte was bitching about some guy from one of her classes, while Delia and Whizzer would occasionally throw in things like „What a jerk“ or „That fuck“.<br/>However, they fell silent when Whizzer noticed both Mend and Trin approaching the table, holding hands and looking all couple-y.</p>
<p>„Aw man, I was really looking forward to these 50 coffees,“ Whizzer called out, pretending to be upset, as they came closer.<br/>„Shut up and be happy for us, you ass,“ Mendel greeted him and sat down, „I mean, I did what you said.“<br/>„What’s that about?“ Trina asked, taking the seat next to Mendel, and looked towards the girls.<br/>„Last Friday, Whizzer decided, that Mendel should kiss you finally,“ Cordelia explained to her.<br/>„You know, it just got sad, because you were both clearly in love,“ Whizzer clarified, „So, I said for every day that he didn’t kiss you yet, he owes us all coffee.“</p>
<p>„Oh great, Honey, you’re paying today?“ Trina asked now grinning, looking at her boyfriend.<br/>„I can’t believe my own girlfriend betrays me like that,“ Mendel muttered, shaking his head, „Yeah, I’ll pay, I guess.“<br/>„I kissed him first,“ Trina then clarified looking at the other three, „Technically, he owes you coffee for one day.“<br/>„Marvin texted me that he’ll be here any minute,“ Charlotte threw in, „So maybe we can already order.“<br/>„Well, that’s my cue,“ Mendel sighed and got up from his seat again, „You guys take the usual?“</p>
<p>As soon as Mendel was out of earshot, Delia started to bombard Trina with questions.<br/>„I mean, we all know and adore Mendel, so we know he would have taken another 2 months until he’d kiss me, right?“ Trina explained, „So when we came back to campus, I thought I might as well just do it, right?“<br/>„Sounds like something a queen would do,“ Whizzer commented.<br/>„How did he react?“ Cordelia asked amused.<br/>„He turned into a stuttering mess, obviously!“ Trina laughed, „It was adorable.“<br/>„Classic Mendel,“ Whizzer agreed, „You better be nice to him, sweetheart, otherwise Delia and I will come after you.“<br/>„I will, Whizz, don’t worry,“ the biology major smiled, „But do you seriously think you and Delia sound like a threat?“<br/>„That hurt,“ Whizzer grabbed his chest dramatically, „You can seriously harm people with your words, Trina.“</p>
<p>„Is he being a drama queen again?“ Marvin’s voice sounded behind him, causing him to turn around. The finances major had just entered the cafe, he was still wearing his big coat and a scarf when he sat down next to Delia.<br/>„Did you go to Antarctica?“ Whizzer countered.<br/>„Ha ha,“ Marvin gave back unimpressed and peeled himself out of the jacket, „I’d pick a comfortable body temperature over looks anytime, thank you very much.“<br/>„You hate scarfs, why do you wear one?“ Trina now pointed out.</p>
<p>But Marvin didn’t get to respond, since Mendel already arrived back at their table, carrying a tray with their beverages.<br/>„Okay, here we go: Black Tea for Marvin, oh hey Marvin, good to see you! Iced Coffee for Whizzer, a Chocolate Mocha for Delia, Milk Tea for Trina, one black Coffee with sugar for Charlotte, and Milk coffee for me.“<br/>„Thank you, Rachel Greene,“ Cordelia joked and took a sip.<br/>„If that implies that I’m Ross, I would like to protest,“ Trina added.<br/>„Nah, I think Marvin is more of the Ross-type of guy,“ Charles said.</p>
<p>„I haven’t seen Friends, so if you are trying to insult me, I wouldn’t know,“ Marvin reminded them.<br/>„Ross is the worst friend,“ Whizzer explained, „If someone ever tells you that Ross is their favorite friend, you should run.“<br/>„Well then, thanks, Charles, I love you too,“ Marvin shot a short glance at the medical student, „Anyway, why are we all here?“</p>
<p>„The question that bothers both philosophers and scientists,“ Mendel sighed, „What is the very reason of existence?“<br/>„Mend and Trin are together now. Surprise, isn’t it?“ Whizzer deadpanned and drank from his iced coffee.<br/>„I already knew that,“ Marvin huffed, „That’s the news?“<br/>„Yeah, I texted him,“ Trina admitted, „I just thought it’d be nice to have a coffee together, especially if my boyfriend pays for all of us.“</p>
<p>„Now, a question that bothers me, not as a philosopher but a nosy friend, is: Why is Marvin still wearing his scarf?“ Charlotte now wanted to know, pointing towards the item of clothing that was wrapped around the man’s neck.<br/>„I think it’s cold in here,“ Marvin lied and hid his face behind the mug.</p>
<p>Of course, Whizzer knew why he was wearing the scarf. To be more precise, he was the reason.<br/>He didn’t take Marvin seriously when he said that he’d throw him out of the car if he left a hickey on his neck, so he didn’t bother. Now, they had the result to that, much to Whizzer’s amusement but Marvin’s complaint.</p>
<p>„You hate scarfs,“ Charles pointed out.<br/>„But I also hate being cold.“</p>
<p>Before Marvin could even react, Delia jumped forward and tucked on the fabric.<br/>„He has a hickey!“ the Blonde announced excitedly, „Marvin Philipps has a hickey!“<br/>„Hey Delia, please yell a little louder,“ Marvin hissed and started to blush.<br/>„Spill, Marv, what’s up with that?“ Charlotte started grinning and eyed the man.</p>
<p>„I started seeing someone,“ Marvin mumbled into his mug, then he sent a subtle gaze towards Whizzer as if he was unsure what to say now. Nobody else noticed it.<br/>They said they wouldn't put a name on it yet, so they also decided not to tell the other’s about it yet. They would make a big deal out of it, maybe even pressuring the two of them subconsciously. Until Marvin and Whizzer both decided what it was, they couldn't really tell the others.</p>
<p>„It’s been a few days, we don’t really know what it is yet,“ Marvin continued slowly, „Hey, how about we talk about something entirely different now?“<br/>„I think it’s amazing that we all end up in relationships at the same time,“ Charlotte said, a genuine smile in her face.<br/>„Imagine, we all go on a big date together!“ Delia proposed, „Charles and I, Mend and Trin, Marvin and his guy, and well, Whizzer will find someone, too.“<br/>„Oh, don’t worry about me, sweetheart. I’m good,“ Whizzer hid his grin behind his coffee, „But have fun at your triple date.“</p>
<p>„Do you have a good feeling about you and that guy?“ Trina asked, looking across the table at her best friend.<br/>Again, Marvin blushed a bit, before he started to smile.<br/>„I do, actually.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>When the first thing Whizzer did when he arrived back at his dorm room, was to pull his phone out.</p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> ur a fucking sap</p>
<p><strong>Marviii🖤:</strong> :)</p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> 💖</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0030"><h2>30. It’s called being in denial</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Talks with your best friend can be so therapeutic, but chances are high they make you face some facts you'd rather not hear.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hurray, I finally set a final number of chapters (which is probably gonna change again but that's roughly how long this fic is gonna be)</p><p>Enjoy and stay safe!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„I think we left around 3am, Charles and Deli were both tipsy,“ Trina described her Friday night, „So Mendel drove us back to campus. And Deli was like, <em>super</em> worried because of Whizzer because she thought that you just dropped him off at his dorm and that he’d be all by himself now.“<br/>
„I’m not that heartless, does Delia know that? If Whizzer really had been miserably sick, I’d have stayed to watch him.“</p><p>Trina had ordered Marvin to come to her dorm room after class. Because she wanted to talk about Mendel, as she claimed, but Marvin knew that she was trying to get information about him and Whizzer.<br/>
So now, they were both laying on her bed, soft indie music was playing in the background.</p><p>„She was so worried, she wanted to go to Whizzer’s room first, to check on him. Mendel tried to talk her out of it, and he said <em>What if he was using it as an excuse and he has a guy over?</em><br/>
And Delia was like <em>Oh nooo, Whizzer would never lie to us about that.</em>“<br/>
„Oops,“ Marvin deadpanned, „But to be fair, it was my idea to say he was sick. He wanted to text you guys that we went away to screw.“<br/>
„Subtle.“<br/>
„I know right?“</p><p>„So, Marv,“ Trina said suddenly, turning her head towards her best friend, „Spill. How come, we see you dancing with some handsome stranger and you still end up with Whizzer?“<br/>
„That sounds rude towards Whizzer,“ Marvin chuckled, „Like you’re implying that he was my number-two choice.“<br/>
„Which he wasn’t, right?“ she asked.<br/>
„I didn’t know he was a choice at all,“ he clarified, „And I certainly didn’t choose to develop feelings for Whizzer Brown.“</p><p>Trina started grinning.<br/>
„Feelings, huh?“<br/>
„Shut up,“ Marvin felt his face flush, „What else did you think, huh?“<br/>
„But Marv, when did that happen? I mean last time we talked about that, you said that you don’t even like him.“<br/>
„It’s called <em>being in denial</em>, I got really good at it in high school when I was trying to tell myself I liked girls.“<br/>
„That sounded incredibly sad. But didn’t answer my question.“</p><p>Marvin let out a sigh.<br/>
„It’s a long story.“<br/>
„Do you have anything else to do?“ Trina raised her eyebrows.<br/>
„Well, no, but-“<br/>
„Then go ahead!“<br/>
„Trin...“ Marvin whined.<br/>
„Marv...“ Trina imitated him.</p><p>„Fine,“ he finally gave in, „I think the night I helped him with his project was the first time that I wasn’t <em>completely</em> annoyed by his existence.“<br/>
„That’s a start.“<br/>
„We went to the theater hall, it was his idea. So when we were snooping around backstage, I went full theater nerd mode and explained some rules. And then he handed me that crown from the picture and told me to go onstage.“<br/>
„So wait, did he even tell you what to do for the shot?“<br/>
Marvin shook his head.<br/>
„He said <em>break a leg</em> and turned on the lights and something in me just… started. I don’t know, it just felt right.“<br/>
„So you fell in love with Whizzer <em>and</em> being onstage?“</p><p>„Anyway,“ Marvin choose to ignore her comment, „We got into talking afterward. Like, <em>real</em> talking, not fighting.“<br/>
„Sweet,“ Trina grinned, „What happened then?“<br/>
Marvin huffed.<br/>
„Nothing, I was a coward and took off after things got uncomfortably serious.“<br/>
„Aw, no,“ Trina called out.</p><p>„Then, that bastard called me on Friday night to pick him up because he got wasted in some gay bar,“ the finances major continued his story.<br/>
„Oh my God, did you do it?“<br/>
„I was pitying him again!“<br/>
Trina burst into laughter, „Sure, and because you were pitying him you drove to some random bar to pick him up and bring him back to campus?“</p><p>„Well, actually-“ Marvin started but got interrupted by his best friend.<br/>
„You let him sleep at your apartment again?!“<br/>
„He forgot his keys and his roommate was out!“<br/>
„Oh my God Marvin, how much in denial <em>were you</em>?“<br/>
„Well, <em>a lot</em>!“</p><p>„So you took care of Drunk Whizzer?“<br/>
Now, Marvin started laughing as well.<br/>
„Basically, he was a toddler. It was like babysitting Jason when he was 3. And when I pointed that out, he empathized that he was as cute as a toddler and <em>demanded</em> me to say it too.“<br/>
„Did you?“<br/>
„Should I have lied?“<br/>
„You’re a gay disaster, are you aware of that?“</p><p>„Well, I wasn’t, until Drunk Whizzer tried to kiss me.“<br/>
Trina let out a squeak.<br/>
„What?! You kissed before?“<br/>
„Of course not, I didn’t let him, he was blackout-drunk, I didn’t imagine him to even remember it the next day,“ Marvin explained, „And Whizzer got mad at me for not kissing him, so he asked me if I’d kiss him if he wasn’t that drunk.“<br/>
„So, would you?“<br/>
„Trina, I literally did last Friday.“<br/>
She started grinning.<br/>
„Just wanted to hear it again.“</p><p>Marvin rolled his eyes.<br/>
„Anyway, Drunk Whizzer insisted on sharing my bed.“<br/>
„Saucy. Did you wake up in each other’s arms, your limbs intertwined?“ Trina giggled.<br/>
„You read to many fanfictions, Trin.“<br/>
„Let a girl dream.“</p><p>„I woke up before he did and sneaked out, of course,“ Marvin then clarified.<br/>
„Yet again, that sounds really sad.“<br/>
He shrugged, „I pretended that I slept on the sofa again.<br/>
However, as I got to know later, he remembered everything from the night before.“<br/>
„Did he tell you?“<br/>
„No, he did not. That asshole pretended like he forgot everything.“</p><p>„So how did you find out?“<br/>
„Well, he hinted at it a few days later when we had to share a bed <em>once again</em>.“<br/>
„Oh my God,“ Trina said, „I can’t believe you’re only telling all of this now. What brought on this?“<br/>
„I was in the library until 10pm and my car wouldn't start, I had an important test on Thursday morning, so I needed a place to crash on campus.“<br/>
„Uhh, hello? Best friend over here?“ Trina raised her hand, pretending to be offended.<br/>
„You have Caroline,“ Marvin threw in, pointing at the empty bed of her roommate, who was not present currently.<br/>
„That was Wednesday night, right? No idea where she was, but she wasn’t here. But well, at least you got to share the bed with Whizzer again,“ the biology major grinned another time and gently nudged Marvin’s shoulder with her own.</p><p>„I guess,“ he mumbled, „If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have admitted to myself, that I might have a thing for him.“<br/>
„So that was when you noticed?“<br/>
Marvin made a noise of agreement.<br/>
„So, what did you do with that information?“<br/>
„Remember how good I am with ignoring my feelings and bottling up my emotions?“<br/>
„Hell, Marvin, maybe you should talk to someone about that.“</p><p>„What? No, I’m fine,“ Marvin shook his head, „It’s just your casual suppression, nothing to worry about.“<br/>
„You hear yourself talking, do you? So you hear how awful that sounds, right?“<br/>
He shrugged.<br/>
„I’m fine, okay?“ he tried to convince his best friend.<br/>
„I’m just saying that it doesn’t sound healthy. Hey, maybe you could talk to Mendel about it if you want to?“<br/>
„Don’t you think it would be weird if I talk to my best friend’s boyfriend about issues I’ve been having since I went to middle school?“<br/>
Now it was Trina who shook her head.<br/>
„Caroline sees him sometimes to talk about her problems, she says that it actually helps her. And Mend may be even more talkative than I am, but when it comes to this he keeps everything to himself.“</p><p>Marvin was still not very convinced.<br/>
„I’ll think about it, alright?“ he said instead, hoping to satisfy Trina with that.<br/>
She threw another concerned gaze at him, but couldn't say anything else, because they got interrupted by Marvin’s ringing phone.</p><p>„Who is it?“ she asked instead, while Marvin fumbled his cellphone out of his back pocket.<br/>
„Guess who,“ he gave back after he looked at the display, „Mind if I take it?“<br/>
„Go ahead Romeo, talk to your Julius.“<br/>
„They both die, you know that, right?“<br/>
„Take the call, dumbass.“</p><p>Smirking, Marvin sat up and pressed the green button.<br/>
„Hey,“ he greeted Whizzer in a higher voice than he intended.<br/>
„Hey, uh, are you home already? Or are you still on campus?“ the voice on the other side of the line asked him.<br/>
„I’m still on campus, I’m at Trina’s right now,“ Trina threw in a short <em>Hello!</em>, „Why are you asking?“<br/>
„Oh,“ Whizzer made, „Does she know it’s me? She’d probably think it’s weird, I can pretend to be your mother and call you later again if you want me to-“</p><p>Marvin smiled. It had been his idea to keep it secret at first, Whizzer said he wouldn't care about whether it’s public or not. But now, there he was, worrying about it, just because Marvin asked him for it.</p><p>„No, Whizzer, it’s okay. Don’t worry. She knows.“<br/>
„Oh,“ Whizzer made again, „Okay.“<br/>
„So, why are you calling me? And if you want me to pick you up from somewhere, I will delete your contact,“ Marvin joked.<br/>
„Asshole. I actually wanted to ask you if you want to join me for racquetball tonight,“ the photography major said, „And my roommate isn’t here, so we can make out in my room if you’re down for that.“<br/>
„Uhm,“ Marvin took a few seconds for consideration, „Yeah, sure, why not. Can I borrow clothes from you?“<br/>
„That would be the first time that you actually wear something fashionable,“ Whizzer teased him. He could hear the bastard’s smirk in his voice.<br/>
„Fuck you. Is that a yes?“<br/>
„Uh, obviously!“<br/>
„So, what time should I come over?“<br/>
„Depends how long you want to make out.“<br/>
„See you in ten?“<br/>
„See you in ten,“ Whizzer laughed, „Tell Trina I said hi and that I sincerely apologize for disturbing your quality time.“</p><p>„You’re going to Whizzer’s and you need to borrow clothes? Someone’s staying ooooveeer,“ Trina warbled.<br/>
„Not tonight. We’re going to racquetball practice together. And Whizzer says hi and apologizes for disturbing our quality time.“<br/>
„Since when do you do sports?“ she asked amused, „That boy really does things to you.“<br/>
Marvin let out a light groan.<br/>
„He really does. But I’ve been looking for something for stress relief anyway, so I might as well try this.“</p><p>„Have fun. And thanks for telling me the whole thing with you two,“ Trina smiled at her best friend, „Keep me updated, I’m glad to see you this happy.“</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0031"><h2>31. You think it’s easy?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Do you know all I want is you?</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Marvin was a competitive little shit. But so was Whizzer. And since the photography major had been playing Racquetball for about two and a half years now, while the finances student never played once in his life, he managed to win almost every round.<br/>Much to Marvin’s frustration.</p>
<p>But Marvin’s frustration was not really the problem. The problem actual problem was that whenever Whizzer tried to show any kind of affection, Marvin would give his best to flee the situation as fast as possible. He wouldn’t kiss him, he would barely give him a hug, as soon as they left Whizzer’s dorm room.<br/>Fine, he was insecure and closeted and all that shit.<br/>Still, this was the first time that Whizzer actually had romantic feelings for the person he was currently dating, and it was the first time he wanted to show affection at all. And even though he understood that Marvin just didn’t seem to be ready for PDA, it frustrated him.</p>
<p>Which led to Whizzer flirting with some guys in the racquetball gym.<br/>He knew those guys for quite some time now, but never really considered them his friends. They would play together, greet each other if they bumped into each other on campus, but that was it.<br/>However, Whizzer was a smooth motherfucker, so it was pretty easy to engage them into some flirty conversation in the breaks in between two rounds.</p>
<p>He could see how annoyed Marvin was by it. The finances student had his arms crossed and his eyes narrowed to slits.<br/>And while he felt guilty for upsetting Marvin, he also wanted to see if he could play him to the point where he just threw his principles and insecurities overboard and kiss him in public. Even if it was just to show that Whizzer was <em>with him</em> and everyone who thought else could go fuck themselves.</p>
<p>He didn’t. After practice, when everyone was packing their things together, some guy (Whizzer was about 60% sure his name was Alexander) approached both men.<br/>„Hey Whizzer, you didn’t introduce your friend,“ he noted, eyeing Marvin from head to toe.<br/>„Me?“ Marvin looked up from his phone, now starring at the blonde man.<br/>„Yeah, you,“ he gave back smirking.<br/>„That’s Marvin,“ Whizzer really didn’t like how Alexander was looking at his <em>whatever-they-were</em>, so he took the right to answer for him.<br/>„Jup, I’m Marvin. Just a friend. And actually, I was about to leave, so…“ the finances major quickly slipped in his jacket and stuffed his phone into the pocket, „Uh, I’ll text you later, Whizz?“</p>
<p>And with that, he turned around and rushed towards the exit.<br/>Whizzer let out a sigh.<br/>„I guess I should go after him, sorry,“ he explained, looking after his <em>just-a-friend</em>, apparently.<br/>„He’s cute,“ Alexander let slip casually.<br/>The photography major rolled his eyes.<br/>„Hands off, tiger,“ he mumbled, turning away and following Marvin.</p>
<p>By now, the man had already brought a good portion of steps between himself and the gym, but Whizzer had long legs, so he was quick to catch up with him.<br/>„Hey hey hey,“ he greeted him, putting his arm around his shoulder.<br/>Marvin stiffened under his touch, he turned his head to look around, probably checking if somebody could see them.</p>
<p>„Calm down, even <em>just friends</em> sometimes touch each other,“ Whizzer said with obvious blame in his voice.<br/>„Whizzer, please,“ Marvin mumbled, shaking the other man’s arm from his shoulders.<br/>„Fine. No PDA,“ Whizzer rolled his eyes and stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jacket, „So don’t like me, then.“<br/>„That’s not… Listen, I’m sorry, alright?“<br/>Marvin had stopped and turned towards the taller man. His voice didn’t sound sorry, he sounded rather annoyed.</p>
<p>„You’re not,“ Whizzer pointed out with one side glance and continued walking.<br/>„You seemed to enjoy all the attention by the other guys, maybe it’s good that they don’t know that you and I have something going on.“<br/>„So you’re really thinking that I ask you to come to practice with me just so I can hit on other guys? Or what’s your point right now?“<br/>„Why else would you flirt with them?“<br/>„Because I couldn’t flirt with you, because you wouldn’t even let me hug or touch you,“ Whizzer’s voice got louder with every word.<br/>„Could you please keep your voice down-“<br/>„No I can’t, I’m mad!“ the taller man dragged his hand through his hair, „Besides, it’s 10pm, nobody’s outside anyway.“</p>
<p>„Can you at least wait until we’re at my car? Please?“<br/>Whizzer agreed with an annoyed sigh.</p>
<p>„Alright, so let’s tell each other why we’re pissed off, maybe we find a solution,“ Whizzer huffed with an ironic undertone when they both sat inside the small car.<br/>Marvin took a deep breath, his eyes closed.<br/>„I get upset when I see you flirting with other men. Sue me.“<br/>„Well, I get upset when you act like it’s a shame to be seen dating me. Sue me.“</p>
<p>Marvin tilted his head slightly.<br/>„That’s really not why I’m acting the way I do. Did you think I’m ashamed of you?“<br/>Whizzer shrugged, his eyebrows furrowed.<br/>„How would I know. I can’t look inside your head. Tell me, why then?“<br/>„Whizzer, I’ve been in denial about my sexuality for years,“ Marvin explained slowly, „It’s incredibly hard to just <em>tell</em> other people that I’m not straight. You think it’s easy to kiss another guy in public when I tried to convince myself for years that I don’t like men?“</p>
<p>The taller man crossed his arms and looked up to the car ceiling. Then, he took a deep breath and let out a sigh.<br/>„Great, I feel like an asshole now.“<br/>Marvin cracked a smile.<br/>„So you just flirted with those guys because you were mad?“<br/>„Yeah. I mean, why else would I? I don’t need to hit on guys anymore, if I’m horny I can just call you.“<br/>„So that’s all I am to you?“ Marvin chuckled.<br/>„Of course not, dumbass,“ Whizzer gave back, looking at Marvin with a light smile on his lips, „Marvin, I like you. Like, really. And I feel ridiculously sentimental saying that out loud. This literally is the first time in my life that I want to hold hands or kiss someone in public.<br/>Also, Alexander wanted to hit on you and I would have liked to strangle him.“</p>
<p>„Who’s the sap now, huh?“ Marvin grinned, grabbing one of Whizzer’s hands, „Listen, I’m working on it, I really am. Because I like you, too. And I want this to work out.<br/>Also, please don’t strangle people to death, I’m not worth that.“</p>
<p>Whizzer huffed, squeezing Marvin’s hand gently.<br/>„Shut up, nerd, you are. Period.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> btw will u give me back the clothes you borrowed?<br/><strong>Me:</strong> or is this gonna b revenge 4 ur sweatshirt?</p>
<p><strong>Marviii🖤:</strong> To quote some pretty boy I once knew: You’ll need to rip them off my marvelous body.<br/><strong>Me:</strong> deal ;)</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0032"><h2>32. Set a goal</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Is this therapy?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Get the tissues, we're going to face our issues!</p><p>Slight TW for internalized homophobia.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Slightly nervous, Marvin stood in front of the dorm room door. He did consider just leaving again because he was not so keen on what was waiting for him on the other side of the door.<br/>
Of course, he didn’t have a problem with Mendel. He just didn’t want to talk about his feelings and emotions, and that would be exactly what they were going to do.<br/>
But well, he texted Mendel the same night he had the fight with Whizzer, and he did expect him. It’d be rude to bail now.<br/>
Besides, Marvin knew that this might actually help. And while he was not very keen on digging through his memories and re-opening chapters in his life he had kept suppressed for years now, he also really did not want to risk his thing with Whizzer.</p><p>That, not wanting to disappoint Whizzer again, was the very reason why Marvin raised his arm to knock on the door eventually.<br/>
Only seconds later, Mendel opened the door on him.<br/>
„Hey Marvin, come in,“ the curly-haired male greeted him with a smile and stepped aside to let Marvin into the dorm room.</p><p>It was a single dorm room, just like Charlotte’s. Many pictures were hanging on the walls, the desk was messy and there was a big trans-pride flag hanging above the bed.<br/>
Huh, that certainly was new information. Learning never stops, Marvin thought.</p><p>„Take a seat, where ever you like,“ Mendel said and pointed towards the sofa and the beanbag on the floor next to it.<br/>
Marvin was not a thirteen-year-old, so he went for the sofa. He sat down on the very edge, his back straightened, his hands folded in his lap. In conclusion: Marvin was incredibly tense.<br/>
He waited until Mendel sat down on his bed, this legs crossed, now looking at him.</p><p>„So…“ the finances student brought out awkwardly, „Uh… Trina said that I could talk to you. About feelings and shit.“<br/>
„That’s kinda what I’m majoring in,“ Mendel nodded, „I can assure you, whatever you want to talk about, it’ll stay between you and me. And you don’t have to talk about things you’re not comfortable talking about, of course.“<br/>
Marvin nodded silently, fiddling with his hands.</p><p>„I started seeing this guy,“ he then started slowly, „As you know, thanks to Cordelia. I didn’t really want to tell anyone if I’m being honest.“<br/>
„May I ask why?“ Mendel asked in a calm voice.<br/>
Marvin shrugged.<br/>
„I don’t really feel like telling the whole world. I mean, I <em>do</em> feel like telling the whole damn world about seeing this particular person, but I don’t really feel like everybody needs to know that I like men.“<br/>
„So it’s not about the relationship itself but rather about your feelings towards your sexuality?“ the psychiatry major checked.<br/>
„I guess,“ Marvin huffed, leaning against the backrest, „I just don’t want to mess this up. I like this guy. A lot. But yesterday we had a fight because I wouldn’t show affection in public, and I’m afraid this might screw everything up.“</p><p>Mendel nodded.<br/>
„So, what exactly goes on in your mind when the said guy tries to be affectionate in public?“<br/>
„The exact thoughts? Well, the first one always goes like <em>People will see you’re into men</em>.“<br/>
„Well, do you think that’d be so bad?“<br/>
Marvin remained silent for a few seconds.<br/>
Then, „I think it wouldn’t. I mean, of course, it wouldn’t. It’s 2019, for God’s sake, who would even care. I <em>know</em> this, but it still feels like I’m doing something that’s wrong.“</p><p>Again, Mendel just nodded.<br/>
„Mind talking about the first time you had negative thoughts towards your sexuality?“<br/>
„I think I was about 13 or something when I started to figure out that I wasn’t straight. Since then I guess.“<br/>
„What were your exact thoughts back then, do you still remember that?“<br/>
„<em>Why can’t I be normal like everyone else?</em>“<br/>
Marvin’s voice was barely audible when he said it.</p><p>„Well, it’s been eight years since then, what did change in those years? Regarding your thoughts about it?“<br/>
The finances major huffed, „I spent a long time in denial. First I tried to convince myself that it’s not true. Then, in high school, I tried to convince myself that I was bi. At some point, around senior year I kinda came to terms with it, internally. But I didn’t really feel comfortable with coming out,“ he paused for some seconds, „I’m still not comfortable with saying it out loud. Except with Trina, but that’s a different thing, I mean, she’s my best friend.“</p><p>„So, do you think it’s necessary to say it out loud?“ Mendel now asked.<br/>
Marvin shrugged.<br/>
„Everyone around me just magically knows or assumes. I could tell my parents, though.<br/>
And I kinda feel like I owe it to the guy.“</p><p>„Elaborate on that, please.“<br/>
„I mean, what if it goes on like that for months? And at some point, he might get tired of hiding and just end things. And actually, I’d understand him, it must be really annoying to date me, I guess.“</p><p>„Marvin, may I tell you something from my own experience?“ the psychiatry major proposed.<br/>
He just nodded in response.<br/>
„It’s a long way, accepting oneself. It can be hard, and sometimes you might want to just turn around and hide in the closet forever. But that ain’t it. And it gets better at some point. That’s what I learned during my transition.“<br/>
„So what do you think I should do?“ Marvin asked quietly, fidgeting with his hands nervously.<br/>
„I’m afraid I can’t tell you what to do, that’s up to you. I’m just here to help you think about it.“</p><p>The theater nerd squinted his eyes.<br/>
„Wait, <em>this</em> is therapy? I thought you would magically have the cure to all my problems.“<br/>
Mendel smiled and shook his head.<br/>
„I must disappoint you on that one, buddy. It’s not that easy.<br/>
You need to come up with your own ways, that can be difficult, I’m fully admitting that.<br/>
But you don’t have anybody else pressuring you, except for maybe yourself.“</p><p>Marvin let out a sigh.<br/>
„So I guess I’ll start working on it? I’ll start to put myself in potentially uncomfortable situations and hope it gets better?“<br/>
„That’s one way to phrase it. Maybe try to call it ‘Take baby steps towards your goal’. Whatever your goal may be. Actually, you could set a goal right now, so you have something to work towards.“</p><p>He raised his arm and dragged his hands through his hair.<br/>
„Like a big goal, that’s probably far in the future, or a very small one, that’s easy to achieve?“<br/>
„Maybe set a big goal and many little ones along the way.“</p><p>Marvin nodded, he stared at the wall while he was thinking.</p><p>A big goal that seemed in the distant future. Well, maybe he really should come out to his parents. Before that he’d need to work on coming out in general. On just saying the words <em>I am</em> and <em>gay</em> in one sentence.<br/>
But he felt like as soon as he got a hang of that, talking to his parents might not even be that big of a deal.</p><p>So, what was a big deal? What seemed completely unimaginable right now?</p><p>„Got one,“ Marvin nodded.<br/>
„Okay,“ Mendel gave back, „You don’t need to tell me, of course. But I want you to write in down, so whenever you’re thinking <em>man, why am I doing this?</em> you can literally look at your goal.“<br/>
With that, the curly-haired male passed him paper and pen.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Goal:<br/>
Kiss Whizzer in public.</em>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I'd like to say a few things and this feels like the right chapter for that, so let's go!!!<br/>So, first off: Thank you so much for all the support I've gotten recently, it really means a lot to me and keeps me motivated to keep on writing! (Even though I have many chapters that are already written, sometimes I still struggle with finding the motivation to continue writing the very last ones. All your comments and kudos are giving me the strength to do that, so thank you very much, they are very appreciated. &lt;3)</p><p>This chapter was a bit hard to write because well, I've been to therapy for years, yet I seriously had to remember what a typical session looked like... sooo... there's to that.<br/>If anyone has something they are struggling about, no matter how "silly" or "dumb" it seems to you, it is worth talking about. That can be with your parents, your friend, or a professional. But, in my experience, that's the first and probably most important step for getting better.<br/>Sorry for getting all emotional about that dfghsdkfgjh.</p><p>Anyway, I hope y'all are having a great day!!!<br/>Sending you lots of love!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0033"><h2>33. Hot with glasses</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marvin gets his will.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>this chapter has no actual content in it except for being wholesome.</p><p>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„Which one?“ Marvin held two DVDs in his hands.<br/>„I thought you wanted to see Rent,“ Whizzer furrowed his brows.</p><p>Yes, the theater nerd had convinced Whizzer to watch Rent together. Now, a week after he gave in to Marvin’s begging, he almost regretted it. But he had looked so excited when Whizzer agreed, and that was actually pretty adorable.<br/>So now, they both sat on Marvin’s sofa, waiting for the pizza Marvin ordered (half pepperoni and half pineapple, to Whizzer’s disgust).<br/>And apparently, they were picking out another movie?</p><p>„It’s both Rent,“ Marvin explained, „This one is the recording of the last show on Broadway,“ he held up the one in his left hand, „And this one is the movie,“ the right hand.<br/>„So it’s based on a movie?“<br/>„Dear God, no. The movie is from 2005, the musical opened on Broadway in 1996, and before that, it played Off-Broadway. The movie contains most of the songs, but not all songs.“<br/>„I’m dating a nerd,“ Whizzer muttered.<br/>„You knew that from the start, don’t pretend to be surprised,“ Marvin gave back unimpressed, „So, which one?“</p><p>„So you say, this one has more songs?“ the Brunette pointed at the left one.<br/>„This one is <em>just</em> songs. There are barely any spoken words in it, almost everything is sung. Well, except for the speeches at- oooh wait, spoilers,“ the shorter man interrupted himself.<br/>„Well, in that case, for God’s sake please let us watch the other one,“ Whizzer groaned, leaning back.<br/>„You’re missing out,“ Marvin shrugged but got up to walk towards the TV.</p><p>„I forgot how excited you get when you’re talking about musical theater,“ Whizzer stated, looking after the other man.<br/>„Wasn’t that the reason you picked me for your photo project?“ he gave back distracted, putting the DVD into the player.<br/>„Oh, I got an A on that, by the way. Thanks for that,“ the photography major grinned and opened his arms as Marvin got up again and walked back over to the couch.<br/>„You know that you’ll need to get up in about 20 minutes, do you?“ the theater nerd asked amused, but still snuggled himself against Whizzer.<br/>„Why do I need to get up?“ he asked, putting his arms around Marvin.<br/>„Because you pay. Remember, you promised me to treat me for pineapple pizza,“ he gave back smirking, leaning the back of his head against Whizzer’s chest.<br/>„That’s not fair, I was drunk“ the Brunette pouted, „Fine, my treat.“</p><p>Marvin turned his head to press a short peck onto Whizzer’s lips.<br/>„Great,“ he then grinned, settling back against the man’s chest, „Ready for Rent?“<br/>The finances major held the remote control up.<br/>Whizzer rolled his eyes, then he buried his face in Marvin’s curls.<br/>„Just start the movie, nerd.“</p><p>It started with some notes played on what sounded like a piano, then, eight people were shown on a stage, each with their own spotlight.<br/>„I thought this was the movie, not the Broadway recording,“ Whizzer asked mildly confused.<br/>„It is, don’t worry. It’s just the first song.“<br/>„I think I know that song, it sounds familiar.“<br/>„Duh, if you didn’t know Seasons of Love it’d throw you out of my apartment,“ Marvin scoffed and leaned into Whizzer’s hug.<br/>„Thank you, sweety,“ Whizzer deadpanned and wrapped his arms tighter around the nerd.</p><p>„You know, in the <em>musical</em>, the song is actually played as the first song of Act 2.“<br/>„Are you going to spend the whole movie pointing out differences?“<br/>„Maybe.“</p><p>„Hey, that girl looks like Charlotte,“ Whizzer stated, pointing at the woman that sang one of the solo parts.<br/>„Yeah, the actress is called Tracie Thoms, she plays Joanne,“ Marvin mumbled, quietly humming along. But well, Trina already said that Marvin would do probably do that.<br/>He also started bobbing his head when the people on the stage started clapping to the song.</p><p>„Another song? Already?“ Whizzer whined when <em>Seasons of Love</em> (or however it was called) ended and the next song (this time, an upbeat rock song) started almost immediately.<br/>„It’s a musical,“ Marvin reminded him, „What did you expect?“<br/>„Dunno, some dialogue maybe,“ he mumbled.</p><p> </p><p>„Is that why the musical is called Rent? Because they are broke and can’t pay for theirs?“<br/>„Kinda.“</p><p> </p><p>When the guy who appeared to be the landlord of the ginger and the leather jacket guy asked about the Ginger’s girlfriend, Whizzer started giggling.<br/>„So, Marks ex is called Maureen. And now she’s dating that girl that looks like Charles?“<br/>„Exactly.“<br/>„If you told me that there were gays in the movie, I would’ve watched it way earlier.“<br/>Marvin let out a chuckle.</p><p>And another song started.<br/>„You know, in the musical, this song is much later. and Collins and Angel are in it as well,“ Marvin noted, „We’ll meet Angel in a minute, she hasn’t been on yet. Well, she has, but she hasn’t been introduced yet, really.“<br/>So he’d really do that the entire movie long.<br/>„Was Collins that guy on the street that got beat up?“ Whizzer asked instead.<br/>„Yeah.“</p><p> </p><p>„I like that girl, she seems cool,“ Whizzer pointed out during some song about a candle.<br/>„I knew you’d like Mimi,“ Marvin smiled without taking his eyes off the movie.</p><p> </p><p>„In the musical, the entire first act is set on Christmas Eve.“<br/>„Terrific.“</p><p> </p><p>„I love Angel, <em>a lot</em>,“ Whizzer laughed.<br/>„Of course you do.“</p><p> </p><p>Right after that scene, the doorbell rang and announced the arrival of their dinner.<br/>„That’s your cue,“ Marvin grinned and sat up, freeing himself out of Whizzer’s embrace.<br/>„I know, I know,“ the Brunette sighed and got up from the sofa, „I can’t believe I am paying for a pizza with fruits on it.“<br/>„Like tomatoes?“ Marvin called after him as Whizzer was on his way to the door.<br/>„Thanks, I hate it,“ he gave back from the hallway.</p><p>Carrying the pizza box in his right hand, Whizzer rubbed his eyes with the left one.<br/>„You alright?“ the theater nerd asked.<br/>„Yeah, my eyes just feel dry,“ the photography major shrugged, placing the box onto the table in the living room.<br/>„You could take your contacts out and put on your glasses“ Marvin smirked, looking up to the other man.<br/>„I don’t like them,“ Whizzer muttered.<br/>But well, he was probably right.</p><p>„I like them, I think you look hot with glasses,“ Marvin grinned.<br/>„You, Marvi, got some really weird kinks,“ he gave back, striding towards the bedroom to get his glasses from his bag.<br/>„It’s not a kink,“ Marvin corrected him, „I just think the man I am dating is attractive. Especially when he wears his glasses.“</p><p>Whizzer shook his head, smiling lightly, as he went into the bathroom to take out his lenses.<br/>When he emerged back into the living room, the glasses on, Marvin wolf-whistled.<br/>„Shut up, eat your fruit pizza,“ he just gave back and let himself fall on on the sofa.<br/>This time, Marvin was the one to open his arms, and Whizzer gladly accepted the invitation.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0034"><h2>34. the guy marvi is seeing</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>They've longed to discover something as true as this is.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Marvin and Whizzer watching RENT - a three-part mini-operetta</p>
<p>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„Hey, it’s the Charlotte-lookalike,“ Whizzer called out right before they started to sing a song about Tango. (Who came up with that, anyway?)<br/>
„Yeah, Joanne.“<br/>
„She looks so gay.“<br/>
„She is, Whizzer, she is.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Delia💞:</strong> Whizz<br/>
<strong>Delia💞:</strong> What r u doin at marvins</p>
<p>Whizzer furrowed his brows.</p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> how do u know<br/>
<strong>Delia💞:</strong> Snapchat map. Duh</p>
<p>That made sense. Stupid technology.<br/>
„Uh, Marv?“ Whizzer turned his head slightly, „Delia saw on Snapchat that I’m here and wants to know what I’m doing here.“<br/>
Marvin didn’t react for a few seconds.<br/>
„We’re watching Rent,“ he then said, „I mean, friends do that sometimes, right?“<br/>
„I guess.“</p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> were watching a movie<br/>
<strong>Delia💞:</strong> Huh. Interesting 👀</p>
<p>„You want to tell her, don’t you?“ Marvin asked quietly, glancing at Whizzer’s phone.<br/>
„It’s fine,“ he just shrugged and put the phone down again, „Don’t worry.“<br/>
He had to admit, he found it a tat unfair that Trina knew about them, Marvin must have obviously told her. But on the other hand, Trina was less likely to tell the others than Delia.</p>
<p>„You sure?“ Marvin’s voice sounded concerned.<br/>
„I am, dumbass,“ Whizzer took one of Marvin’s hands in his own and raised their hands up to his lips to press a light kiss onto the back of the theater nerd’s hand.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„Hey, fun fact!“ Marvin called out during some scene where they sang in the subway, „They filmed Santa Fe in an actual moving subway car.“<br/>
„How do you know that?“<br/>
„Directors commentary.“<br/>
„Oh my God, you are such a nerd,“ Whizzer mumbled, chewing on a pizza slice.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>And then there was this song, a love song. Just like all the other ones, Marvin hummed quietly along, but somehow this one song was just <em>different</em>.<br/>
Whizzer smiled when he felt Marvin press a kiss onto his hair, just when the line <em>with a thousand sweet kisses</em> sounded through the speaker of the TV.<br/>
„Oh my God Marvin, you are so <em>cheesy</em>,“ Whizzer giggled and turned his head to look up to the other man.<br/>
„Problem?“ Marvin smirked, brushing a strain of hair out of Whizzer’s face.</p>
<p>Placing one hand on the back of Marvin’s neck, Whizzer pulled himself upwards to press his lips onto his.</p>
<p>Kissing Marvin, that felt special to him. Different, like something he never felt before.<br/>
Marvin was really not the first person he was involved with, but he was the first person he wanted to kiss without necessarily having sex in mind.<br/>
Did Whizzer ever kiss somebody without sleeping with him right afterward? He couldn't really tell, most likely not.<br/>
Laying on the sofa together, snuggled into each other, watching a movie together. He never did that before. He simply did not feel the need to do something like that.<br/>
But well, that was before Marvin. For some odd reason, when he was together with the other boy every cliche about being in love suddenly seemed to apply to him.</p>
<p>Maybe Whizzer Brown really fell in love with Marvin Philipps.<br/>
And he did not try to fight it. Because it felt <em>right</em>, like it was supposed to be, and it felt <em>good</em>.</p>
<p>
„Let’s tell the others,“ Marvin suddenly said, pulling back from Whizzer, a sparkle in his eyes and a bright smile on his lips.<br/>
For two seconds, Whizzer got concerned that the other man magically read his mind.<br/>
„Tell them about us, you mean?“ he asked cautiously, just to make sure.<br/>
„Yeah. Or only Cordelia, if you’d rather have that. But we could also just tell everybody.“<br/>
„And you’re entirely okay by that?“ the Brunette ensured himself one last time.
</p>
<p>
 Marvin looked at him, happiness, contentment, and affection in his gaze. He was radiating the same energy as when he stood on the stage in the theater hall.<br/>
„Yeah,“ he then laughed, brushing another loose strain of hair from Whizzer’s forehead.<br/>
„Alright,“ Whizzer joined his laughter, „But I’ll write the text.“<br/>
„Shouldn’t we tell them in person?“<br/>
„Nah, I already have a plan.“
</p>
<p>
Grinning mischievously, the photography major pulled out his phone.<br/>
„I’m scared, but go on,“ Marvin gave back, squinting at the telephone in Whizzer’s hands.
</p>
<p>
<strong>Me:</strong> guys<br/>
<strong>Me:</strong> i got some teeeaaa<br/>
<strong>Trina👛:</strong> Spill!<br/>
<strong>Me:</strong> i got a picture of the guy marvi is seeing<br/>
<strong>Me:</strong> wanna see it??<br/>
<strong>Charlotte👩🏽⚕️:</strong> Uhm, YEAH!
</p>
<p>
„Oh my God, you are so extra,“ Marvin chuckled, „You’re just gonna send in a picture of yourself?“<br/>
Whizzer did not respond, he just opened his camera roll.<br/>
„Which one do you like better, this one or this one?“ he asked instead.<br/>
„Hell, you got a shitload of selfies,“ Marvin mumbled, „Hey, did you take a picture of me when I was asleep?!“<br/>
„Maybe,“ Whizzer grinned, „Do you think I should send it for proof?“<br/>
„No, you won’t do that!“
</p>
<p>
<strong>Me:</strong> <em>photo</em><br/>
<strong>Me:</strong> its me<br/>
<strong>Me:</strong> surprise<br/>
<strong>Mend💡:</strong> 🤯<br/>
<strong>Delia💞:</strong> OMG I KNEW IT!!!! CHARLES OWES ME MONEY!!!<br/>
<strong>Delia💞:</strong> Hey Marv if u hurt Whizz, Mend and I will hunt u down 😤<br/>
<strong>Charlotte👩🏽⚕️:</strong> Whizzer, are you just fucking with us right now, or are you being serious?
</p>
<p>
„I can’t believe Charlotte doesn’t believe me,“ the Brunette gasped dramatically.<br/>
„To be fair, you’d be the kind of person to just joke around about that,“ Marvin gave back shrugging.<br/>
„Shut up, where’s your phone, you need to back me up.“<br/>
„It’s on my desk, do you really want me to get up for this?“<br/>
Whizzer rolled his eyes and started a voice record.
</p>
<p>
„No, Charles, I am actually telling the truth,“ he spoke into the microphone before he held the phone towards Marvin, „Am I, Marv?“<br/>
„He is. Surprise,“ the other man sighed, „Also, Delia, why do you possibly think I would harm Whizzer?“<br/>
„Well, you <em>are</em> making me watch a musical with you.“<br/>
„You agreed to it, this one’s one you. Rent is a classic. Can we continue watching now?“<br/>
„Sorry for not telling you guys,“ Whizzer proceeded to talk into his phone, „Please forgive us.“<br/>
„And for the love of everything, please don’t make us go on triple dates,“ Marvin added, waving with the remote in his hands, signaling Whizzer that he’d like to continue the movie now.<br/>
„Love you guys, please don’t be mad,“ the photography major ended the voice record and sent it.
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0035"><h2>35. Baby</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Okay but like... Are they cute together?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>RENT spoilers ahead so if you still plan on watching the musical/movie you should to it before reading this little chapter!<br/>(otherwise, you could skip this chapter, I suppose. Or you watch RENT because it deserves to be seen, honestly.)</p>
<p>Instead, you could read a little oneshot I wrote about Marvin and Whizzer being quarantined together!<br/><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24233797">Boyfriend of the year</a><br/>It's basically tooth-rotting fluff tbh.</p>
<p>Stay safe and Enjoy! :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„You know, in the musical, there is this amazing scene right now, it’s called <em>Christmas Bells</em> and there is just so much happening on stage at the same time, it looks amazing. Remind me to show you the scene on the Broadway recording,“ the finances student said excitedly after a few minutes, „But it doesn’t really work in a movie, so they cut it, I guess.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„Who the hell came up with Maureen’s performance?“<br/>
„The man is called Jonathan Larson and he is a genius, thank you very much.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Delia💞:</strong> I cant believe u and marvin r dating!!!!<br/>
<strong>Delia💞:</strong> I mean yea im not surprised<br/>
<strong>Delia💞:</strong> Y didnt u tell me tho???<br/>
<strong>Me:</strong> marv wanted to keep it lowkey<br/>
<strong>Delia💞:</strong> We NEED to talk abt this later<br/>
<strong>Delia💞:</strong> But r u guys like,,,, cute together??</p>
<p>„Marvi, are we cute together?“<br/>
„What?“ the theater nerd furrowed his brows.<br/>
„Delia asks if we are cute together.“<br/>
Marvin huffed and turned his head to the TV again, „Don’t know, are there criteria for that?“</p>
<p>Whizzer opened his camera to take a photo of their intertwined hands.<br/>
„I think we are cute together,“ he said, a grin on his face.<br/>
„If you say so, Whizz,“ Marvin gave back, side-glancing at the phone again, „Tell Delia I said hi and put the phone away then, maybe?“<br/>
„Okay, Dad,“ Whizzer chuckled and locked the phone again.<br/>
„Kinky. Oh, by the way, I think you’ll really like the next song“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Whizzer fell in love with <em>La vie Boheme</em>.<br/>
He could not explain what it really was, the whole scene was just a masterpiece in general. The joy of living, the madness, just everything.<br/>
He heard Marvin laughing when he started to tap his fingers to the beat.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„Right there, they cut a whole song. And the song is actually pretty good, I still don’t get why they would cut it out.“<br/>
„What was it about?“<br/>
At this point, Whizzer asked himself why he even replied to Marvin’s anecdotes.<br/>
„New Year’s Eve and breaking back into their building.“<br/>
„A shame,“ he deadpanned.<br/>
„Oh, and actually, Maureen and Joanne had a fight right after La vie Boheme, so they kind of got together again during that song.“<br/>
„How dare they change so much?“ Whizzer gave back monotonous.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„See the kids playing in the background? This is how the director wanted to make his children appear in the movie.“<br/>
„Isn’t the scene literally showing a drug deal?“<br/>
„You take what you get, I guess.“</p>
<p>„Wait, Marvin, what is happening with Angel?“ Whizzer asked suddenly at the shot of his favorite character, shaking and sweating in the subway.<br/>
„We’ll find out shortly,“ Marvin gave back plainly.<br/>
„Why is Angel in a hospital bed? Marvin, is Angel dying?!“<br/>
„Watch the movie to find out.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„I hate this.“<br/>
They reached the eulogies. Whizzer had tears in his eyes, even though he would never admit it.<br/>
„Why do you show me this movie, knowing that the best character is dying?“ he sobbed over the song.<br/>
„Are you crying?“ Marvin asked with a slightly trembling voice.<br/>
„I am <em>not</em>,“ Whizzer stressed, „I have allergies.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Suddenly, Marvin hit pause.<br/>
„What’s up?“ Whizzer asked confused, still wiping tears from his cheeks.<br/>
„They cut one of my favorite songs from the movie, but they kept it in as a deleted scene, so we’re watching that now before we watch the rest,“ Marvin explained sniffling.<br/>
„Oh my God, I’ll never watch Rent with you ever again.“<br/>
„<em>Halloween</em> is a masterpiece, the song has beautiful metaphors and I am not accepting the scene to get cut out.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„Are you pausing <em>again</em> to show me another deleted scene?“ Whizzer asked only a few minutes later after Marvin stopped the movie again.<br/>
„Yes I do,“ the theater nerd gave back, „Because you didn’t want to see the Broadway Recording.“<br/>
„Jesus Christ, why am I doing this to myself,“ Whizzer groaned and shifted his position, turning his body to bury his face in Marvin’s chest.<br/>
„Because you like me,“ the other man gave back, now gently stroking through Whizzer’s hair.<br/>
„I know, and I can’t explain that, either.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„Wait, Angel killed Benni’s dog? When did that happen?“ Whizzer furrowed his brows.<br/>
„That’s literally what <em>Today for you</em> is about, Whizzer.“<br/>
„Really? Huh, I missed that.“<br/>
„How did you miss the one thing the whole song is about?“ Marvin chuckled.<br/>
„I was busy with stanning Angel, obviously.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„Marv, are they killing Mimi, too?!“ Whizzer called out when the movie showed short sequences in which the group was looking for their lost friend.<br/>
„If you’d listen, you would have heard that she was seen three weeks ago, so no, she’s not dead.“<br/>
„Good,“ Whizzer nodded, „Because if the movie kills my two favorite characters, I will be very upset.“<br/>
Marvin just smiled mysteriously.</p>
<p>„You said Mimi wouldn’t die!“ Whizzer cried only minutes later, glaring at the screen.<br/>
„I did not say that, I said that she was still alive.“<br/>
„I hate you.“<br/>
„You don’t.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„For the record,“ Whizzer spoke into his phone again, the group chat opened, „I will never watch Rent again, especially not with Marvin because he is a nerd.“<br/>
„You cried two times and you loved <em>La Vie Boheme</em>,“ Marvin called, coming back from the kitchen.<br/>
„Also,“ he chose not to comment on Marvin’s betrayal, „Pineapple pizza is disgusting and whoever invented it is a shame for all humankind.“<br/>
„He ate two slices,“ Marvin noted into the microphone.<br/>
„Because crying makes me hungry, asshole.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„Do you know how cute you are when you get all excited over a musical?“ Whizzer grinned later that night, turning his head to look at the man beside him in the bed.<br/>
„Aren’t you supposed to be the cute one, and I’m the asshole that you somehow ended up with?“ he just yawned, his eyes were already closed.<br/>
Smiling, Whizzer leaned over to brush his lips against Marvin’s. He felt the other boy’s lips curling into a smile as well.</p>
<p>„Good night, Marvin,“ the Brunette whispered, putting his arms around the theater nerd and pulling him close. He buried his nose in Marvin’s curls and let out a content sigh.<br/>
„Night, baby,“ Marvin mumbled, probably already half-asleep.</p>
<p>Whizzer’s heart fluttered at the pet name.<br/>
Oh boy. If Marvin knew what things he made Whizzer feel for the first time in his life.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0036"><h2>36. Be gentle</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Whizzer seeks help from Marvin's best friend.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I did not forget to upload a chapter, no no!<br/>I just got caught up watching Legally Blonde with my friend.<br/>Which is actually a funny coincidence, considering this and the following chapters!</p>
<p>Enjoy and stay safe!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>On Sunday evening, Whizzer knocked on Trina’s dorm room door.<br/>Inside, he could hear an annoyed groan, followed by footsteps.<br/>„You have a key, don’t you?!“ Trina called out before she saw who actually stood in front of the door, „Oh, I’m so sorry Whizzer, I thought you were Caroline. Come in!“</p>
<p>„You really must love your roommate,“ Whizzer commented, stepping inside.<br/>„We get along pretty well, usually,“ the biology major explained herself, „But she got really weird recently, I think it’s because she started seeing this guy. I just feel like he’s not good for her, I think he’s not really serious with her-“</p>
<p>Trina was a rambler, Whizzer already knew that.</p>
<p>„Anyway,“ she came to an end, „What’s up? Had a nice weekend at Marvin’s?“<br/>She grinned knowingly. Her gaze flickered to his neck, where Marvin had left a tiny hickey on Sunday morning, mostly as an act of revenge. Joke’s on him, Whizzer really did not care about people seeing he had sex.</p>
<p>„Yeah, he pleaded me to watch Rent with him,“ Whizzer nodded, „He better appreciate that I agreed eventually.“<br/>Trina laughed.<br/>„I read about it in the group chat. And Marvin texted me about it. There are two things he gets super excited about, musical theater and Whizzer Brown,“ she stopped when Whizzer crossed his arms, grinning amused, „You know, I probably should not talk to you about this.“<br/>„Maybe not,“ the man gave back, „But the musical theater thing is what I wanted to talk to you about. Well, kinda. The theater group here is playing Legally Blonde, right?“</p>
<p>„Yeah, I wanted to buy tickets for me and Marv for next weekend. Some girl from one of my classes is handling the sales this year, usually, it’s Marvin who’s taking care of the tickets. Well, you know him.<br/>He dragged me along to watch the show’s with him since Freshman year,“ Trina sat down on her bed, „You know, you need to stop me if I ramble too much. It’s kinda my thing, Charles and Marvin got used to it and, I think Mend thinks it’s cute. Sometimes I ask myself how I got so lucky to meet Mendel and actually end up becoming his girlfriend.“</p>
<p>„That’s funny because he thinks the same way,“ Whizzer said, „So, uh, you and Marv will watch the show together?“<br/>While it seemed like a sweet little tradition between best friends, Whizzer was kind of bummed out by that information, he actually planned on taking Marvin out on a date to watch the show together. Even if he could become slightly annoying when he was geeking out on musical theater, Marvin had been incredibly adorable while doing that.</p>
<p>„Do you want to join us?“ Trina offered.<br/>But Whizzer quickly shook his head, „No, no, I don’t want to intrude your quality time like that again-“<br/>„Ah, don’t worry about that!“ the girl interrupted him, „I think it’s a cute idea! Maybe we can all go together, do you think Delia can get Charles to join? Charles is not very into theater, well neither am I but it is kinda nice to see a show when there are people in it that you actually know, and this year, for instance, a very good friend of mine plays Warner.“</p>
<p>Whizzer just nodded along, mostly because he did not want to be rude towards Marvin’s best friend. But also because he genuinely liked Trina.</p>
<p>„But I insist that I pay for Marvin’s ticket, so I can rub it into his face the next time he wants me to pay for his pineapple pizza,“ he eventually got the word.<br/>„Didn’t you eat two pieces?“<br/>„Because the jerk made me watch a sad movie and crying makes me hungry, for god’s sake!“<br/>Trina let out a giggle.<br/>„You are sooo cute together.“<br/>„I know right, that’s what I said!“<br/>„So, are you like,“ Trina paused for a moment, looking for the right words, „Officially boyfriends?“</p>
<p>Huh. That was a good question, actually.<br/>„I don’t know,“ Whizzer answered slowly, „We didn’t really talk about it. We just avoid saying anything other than <em>dating</em>, or <em>seeing each other</em>, or some bullshit.“<br/>Trina just nodded understanding.<br/>„Better than nothing, I guess,“ again, she paused for a few seconds, „But well, I tried for <em>years</em> to get him on a stage, and somehow, you manage to do that just by <em>asking</em> him, so I guess that’s definitely <em>something</em>. I saw the picture and it’s amazing how comfortable Marvin looks in it, his posture, and everything. He should play more theater, you’re with me on that, right?“</p>
<p>„Oh, totally,“ Whizzer agreed, „But instead he chooses to study for his lame ass major.<br/>Seriously, how much time is this boy investing in his homework? He literally threw me out of the apartment because he said he needed to work on some assignment and he couldn’t focus properly if I was around.“<br/>„That’s Marvin for you,“ Trina let out a sigh, „He thinks he’ll disappoint his parents if he doesn’t get straight A’s. Which is ridiculous, because his parents are totally sweet and would never be disappointed just because Marvin decides to do things he actually likes.<br/>Honestly, wait until you meet Robert and Beth, they are <em>the</em> best, I swear-“</p>
<p>„Let’s not talk about me meeting Marvin’s parents, maybe,“ the photography major threw in, „The thing has been going on for two weeks, who knows how long it’ll actually last.“<br/>Trina tilted her head slightly, looking up to the man.<br/>„I’m pretty positive it’s gonna be a while. I think I’ve never seen Marv that happy.“<br/>Whizzer didn’t really know what to respond to that.</p>
<p>„Hey, Whizz, one last thing,“ Trin fidgeted with her hands, „I don’t want to be <em>that</em> friend, but please be patient with him. As you most likely know, he has some problems with accepting himself. I can imagine that this has some impact on your relationship, and I’m sure it’s not always easy.<br/>But try to give him time. And be gentle.“<br/>Whizzer nodded.<br/>„I will.“<br/>„Also, if you hurt him Charlotte and I will hunt you down, obviously.“<br/>„Obviously,“ he gave back, both shared a laugh.</p>
<p>„So, I’ll take care of the tickets and you get the other’s to join us?“ Trina eventually proposed.<br/>„I’m amazing at convincing people,“ Whizzer grinned.<br/>„Good luck with Charles, then. She didn’t watch a single show in her entire life, and she refuses to start now.“<br/>„Well, I have a feeling that a certain girl named Cordelia might change that.“</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0037"><h2>37. Chinese Takeout</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The importance of traditions and the lack of labels.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I will just pretend as if I didn't straight up forget to upload this chapter yesterday.</p>
<p>Enjoy and stay safe!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Two years ago, Trina and Marvin established a tradition.<br/>Grabbing some Chinese takeout for themselves and Charles, spending the next hour in the medical student’s dorm room, bitching about life, before heading to see the show. Trying to convince Charles to join them last minute and just buy a ticket at the door. It never worked, and if Marvin was honest, he never thought it would.<br/>Still, they tried it every time. Because it was a tradition.</p>
<p>Today, things were slightly different. This time, they were not just three but six people, spread in the single dorm room. And this time, Charles <em>would</em> join them, along with Delia, Mend, and Whizzer.<br/>However, they still had Chinese takeout, and they still were bitching about life.</p>
<p>„All I am saying is that Caroline really changed since she started dating that guy! And it’s really bothering me,“ Trina was rambling, „I mean, we’ve never been best friends, but we could always rely on each other. And now she doesn’t even talk to me, really. Also, I never met her new boyfriend. Caroline had <em>many</em> boyfriends throughout the last two years and I met <em>all of them</em> pretty quickly.“</p>
<p>„Sometimes I’m just really glad to have a single dorm room,“ Charles nodded, shoving noodles into her mouth.<br/>„Honey, you’re over at mine pretty often anyway,“ Mendel tried to calm his girlfriend, gently dragging his fingers through her hair. The both of them were on the sofa, Trina had her head bedded on Mendel’s lap, the box of mini spring roles placed on her tummy. Her hand still held onto the same spring role as when she started her story about her roommate.</p>
<p>„Maybe they’ll break up soon,“ Whizzer noted, his mouth full of rice.<br/>The photography major sat on Charles’ desk chair.<br/>„That’s rude to say, Babe,“ Delia, settled next to Charlotte on her bed, tried to discipline her best friend, „But yeah, maybe they’ll break up. If he’s not good for her, she’ll probably notice at some point.“<br/>„I <em>hope</em> she does,“ Trin agreed, „I mean, I don’t hope that they break up, obviously, I’m not a monster. But I hope she recognizes how much he changed her in the past few weeks.“<br/>„Trin, I know you just care about her, but it’s kinda her own decision,“ Marvin added.<br/>He sat on the floor, his back leaned onto the desk, „If she chooses to stay with that guy who’s seemingly bad for her, you won’t be able to convince her otherwise. People are stubborn.“</p>
<p>„Marvin: supporting people in their horrible decisions since 1998,“ Whizzer mocked him.<br/>„You’re saying that as if you’re not one of them,“ Marvin fired back, boldly looking upwards to look at his <em>were-they-boyfriends-now</em>?<br/>„Since when does that boy have a comeback game?“ the man asked now, looking around at the others.<br/>„I learned from the best,“ Marvin smiled satisfied.</p>
<p>„Do we know yet what to think of this dynamic?“ Charles asked medium loudly.<br/>„We love it, obviously,“ her girlfriend gave back.<br/>„Yeah, we’re cute together! Marvie, give me your hand!“ Whizzer blindly reached out for the other man’s hand.</p>
<p>Marvin blinked and looked up to his <em>maybe-they-should-talk-about-that-someday</em>.<br/>„Baby, not now, I’m eating,“ he gave back plainly, eyeing between Whizzer and his hand, which absurdly lead to the other’s to burst out into laughter.<br/>Whizzer, however, seemed satisfied with just the pet name and continued his meal as well.</p>
<p>„You know, guys, I think it’s an amazing coincidence that we all ended up becoming friends,“ Delia threw in and took a plastic-fork out of one of the bags in which the food was delivered.<br/>The others nodded or made noises of agreement, but Marvin never was someone to go with the flow.<br/>„Deli, eating Chinese food with a fork is a sin,“ he noted instead, pointing his chopsticks towards the Blonde.<br/>„Jesus Christ, Marv, I like you a lot, but you really are a pain in the ass sometimes,“ Whizzer said dryly, nudging Marvin’s side gently with his foot.<br/>„You must know,“ Marvin countered, even though he did not intend to say that as loudly as he then actually did.</p>
<p>Charlotte almost choked on her food.<br/>„Marvin Dominique Philipps!“ she brought out coughing.<br/>„Oh my God, Marvin’s second name is Dominique?!“ Whizzer asked excitedly, „For real?“<br/>„Yeah,“ Trina answered for her best friend, who was currently busy with throwing glares at Charlotte for calling out his full name in the first place.<br/>„This is <em>amazing</em>, best day ever,“ the photography major grinned, looking at Marvin.</p>
<p>„Big words, <em>Andrew</em>,“ the latter mumbled, still loud enough for everyone to hear.<br/>„Wait, Whizzer’s actual name is Andrew?!“ Trina laughed.<br/>„Sweetheart, did you think my parents would legally name me Whizzer?“<br/>„I don’t know, I never thought it through,“ she just shrugged, „Wait, so, technically I can call you Andy?!“<br/>„Hell, you won’t.“<br/>„That’s what your sisters call you, though,“ Mendel pointed out.<br/>„Yeah, but my sisters are little shits,“ he scoffed, „Man, I can’t wait to go back home for winter break and see those brats.“</p>
<p>„Your sisters are sweet and you love them,“ Delia commented, „Hey, didn’t Laura start dating someone? I saw something on Instagram, do you know something about it?“<br/>Whizzer shrugged.<br/>„Yeah, I called her after I saw that post because <em>how could she dare not to tell her older brother</em>, but she just said I’d met them in a few days anyway.“<br/>„Ooh, is poor Andrew upset that he doesn’t know the newest gossip?“ Marvin teased, stuffing his empty box into the paper bin under the desk.<br/>„Can you believe I bought this guy tickets to a show and he’s <em>still</em> mean to me?“ Whizzer sighed dramatically and shook his head in pretended disappointment.</p>
<p>„That’s just how Marvin shows affection,“ Trina put her empty box on the floor next to the couch, „You get used to it, actually.“<br/>„Now that just sounds as if I’m a dick for 95% of the time,“ Marvin huffed.<br/>„Let’s all agree on 80%, won’t we?“ Charles proposed and got up from her bed.<br/>„You know we love you, Marv,“ Delia added smiling.<br/>„Duh, obviously. We’re joining you to watch a musical, if that ain’t love I don’t know what else is,“ Whizzer mumbled.<br/>„Talking about that, we should get going,“ Mendel mentioned, throwing a glance at his watch, „Everyone finished eating?“</p>
<p>They all agreed and one-by-one got up from their seats, threw away their boxes, and put on their shoes. Trina and Mendel went outside to get their coats from Trina’s dorm room.<br/>The theater nerd got up from the floor and eyed the man next to him, who was still sitting in the desk chair, his knee pulled up to his chin.<br/>„You really can’t sit like a normal functioning human being, can you?“ he asked, shaking his head with a light smile on his face.<br/>„Of course I can’t, I’m gay,“ Whizzer gave back and looked up to Marvin like he didn’t understand the question.<br/>„So am I, but I can sit in a chair like a sane person.“<br/>„You’re so <em>not fun</em>, Marvin.“</p>
<p>He held his hands out for Marvin to pull him up.<br/>„Thanks,“ he then said, looking slightly down at the man, now that he was the taller one again.<br/>Marvin looked around for a short moment, checking if anybody was watching (not that it was still a secret, but he would have felt kinda awkward to have somebody watching) before leaning upwards to plant a short, sweet kiss onto his <em>the boy I’m seeing</em>’s lips.</p>
<p>When they left Charlotte’s room, in front of which Trin and Mend were already waiting for them, and headed towards the theater hall, it suddenly hit him:</p>
<p>He just said out loud that he was gay to another person than Trina. He said it mainly to Whizzer, and Charlotte and Delia were in the room too, they most likely heard it too.</p>
<p>And the weirdest part about it was:<br/>Marvin didn’t even notice until now.</p>
<p>Well, now that certainly was some kind of progress.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0038"><h2>38. Playbill</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>It's... a... musical!</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Before we start, I only want to say that I don't mean Christian Borle but instead simply suck at picking out names for side characters.<br/>(Because let's get this straight, everything else would be incredibly weird)</p>
<p>Enjoy and stay safe!!!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„You really look ridiculous in that thing,“ Whizzer noted, eyeing Marvin’s coat.<br/>It was the ludicrously big one, the one the finances major always wore, at least since the end of November.<br/>„I don’t really care as long as it keeps me warm, to be honest,“ Marvin shrugged, pulling down the zipper to peel himself out of the jacket.<br/>While Marvin was busy taking off the monster of a coat the was wearing, Whizzer started browsing through the playbill.</p>
<p>„That’s a friend of mine!“ Trina pointed out, peeking into the playbill in his hands, „He plays Warner. Wait, I already told you about that, didn’t I?“<br/>„That’s <em>Trina</em> for ‘We need to go to the stage door after the show’,“ Marvin translated smiling, now finally freed from his coat.<br/>„Hey, I know the girl that plays Elle!“ Delia pointed out, taking the playbill from his hands, „We definitely should go to the stage door afterward!“<br/>„Deli, don’t you have your own?“ Whizzer took the booklet back and finally threw a look into it himself.</p>
<p>He was surprised to find out that Alexander, the guy from racquetball who wanted to hit on Marvin, played in the ensemble.<br/>And he was even more surprised to notice another known face.<br/>Whizzer almost forgot about the guy that screwed him in one of the dressing rooms at the very beginning of the semester. Yet, there he was, playing Emmett.</p>
<p>„I think maybe we should go inside now,“ Charles proposed, pointing towards the doors that lead into the theater hall.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„I’m not gonna lie, I expected you to find an excuse to bail last minute,“ Marvin said to the other man when they sat down at their assigned seats.<br/>„Duh, I paid for our tickets,“ Whizzer scoffed, „I mean, I like you, but I’m not spending money on that to let the tickets expire.“<br/>„You’re overdramatizing. The tickets are not that expensive.“<br/>The lights in got dimmed and some lady got on stage, a microphone in her hand, to make some last announcements before the show started.</p>
<p>„I would have phrased it <em>Thank you so much, Baby, it’s such a sweet idea for a date</em>,“ the Brunette teased him whispering, „But you can be glad that I get what you wanted to say.“<br/>„We’re with the others, I’d hardly call it a date,“ the theater nerd responded in a low voice.<br/>„It’s like the triple-date Cordelia begged for, but we’re doing your favorite thing. Admit it, Marv, you love it.“</p>
<p>Even though it was dark in the auditorium, He could see how Marvin turned his head to look at him. Whizzer started to grin, but he kept his eyes at the stage, where the lady now wished everyone to enjoy the show.<br/>„Yeah, I do,“ Marvin then said quietly, „Thank you, Baby.“</p>
<p>And as if that wasn’t enough, he placed his arm onto the armrest, bringing his hand next to Whizzer’s, and intertwined their fingers.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Whizzer could kinda see what Marvin loved about musical theater. He’ll never become a geek like the other man, but he genuinely enjoyed the show.<br/>Partly because of Marvin holding his hand throughout the whole thing.<br/>Yes, the room was dark, nobody could even see their hands, except for maybe Charles (who sat next to Marvin) and Mend (who sat next to Whizzer). But baby steps!</p>
<p>Considering the very beginning of their relationship, if you could even call it like that, it was kind of a big thing. A few weeks ago, Marvin wasn’t comfortable with <em>any</em> PDA at all, so this little thing seemed like the world.<br/>Where did it come from all of a sudden?<br/>He would ask Marvin later.</p>
<p>All that mattered now, was his hand in his, gently squeezes from time to time, thumbs brushing over the soft skin. Was that what Cordelia was talking about all along? It being <em>worth</em> it?<br/>Because hell, it really was.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Whizzer’s hand felt so empty again when Marvin loosened the grasp for the final applause.</p>
<p>„I think it was amazing!“ Delia squeaked excitedly after the lights were turned back on, „Let’s do watch all the other shows as well from now on!“<br/>„Congrats, Marv, you infected her,“ Whizzer sighed, pretending to be upset about it, „Good luck with that, Charlotte.“<br/>„Uh uh, there’s no way you guys are leaving me hanging with that now,“ the medical student put her arm around her girlfriend’s waist but kept looking at the others while talking, „If I’m going down, I’m taking you all with me.“</p>
<p>„I never met one single person who watched an entire musical without enjoying it,“ Marvin furrowed his brows, „I wasn’t aware that was something a person could do.“<br/>Whizzer didn’t know if he should be ashamed that he got the reference. His silly boy had that musical about the guy on the ten-dollar-bill on loop whenever they were in the car together.<br/>„I mean, it wasn’t bad,“ Charles replied, „I think it was kinda nice, actually. I’m just not really into it, I guess?“<br/>„Hey guys,“ Trina interrupted their discourse, „Do you mind if we go to the stage door? I’d like to say hi to a friend of mine who was in the show.“</p>
<p>Whizzer wondered whether the fling (Christian, according to the playbill) would recognize him. Probably not, he figured. It wasn’t important anyway since Marvin stepped into his life.<br/>The latter had disappeared somewhere in the crowd, off to greet some people he knew from high school, apparently. <em>Not friends</em>, as he had said, <em>more like acquaintances from theater class. It’d be rude not to say hello.</em><br/>Trina was off to tell Warner how amazing he was, while Delia did the same to the entire cast („Ensemble is important, too, I want to show them how appreciated they are!“), dragging her girlfriend along. That led to Mendel and Whizzer standing at the side, waiting for their significant other’s to come back. <br/>Whizzer could say hi to Alexander, maybe, but they weren’t really that close, and to be perfectly honest, Whizzer was still pissed at him for his attempt to hit on Marvin. </p>
<p>„Hey, I know you!“ a voice suddenly appeared from his side, but the voice did not belong to his acquaintance from racquetball practice.<br/>Aw, crap.<br/>„Oh, hey,“ Whizzer greeted Christian back. He hated talking to guys he had sex with some time ago. It was always weird, they’d either try to flirt or they’d play unapproachable. Boring.<br/>„So, you came to watch the show?“ Emmett Forrest raised his eyebrows, his arms were crossed in front of his chest.<br/>„I’m here with friends,“ Whizzer gave back reserved, nodding towards Mendel, who just waved  awkwardly, „The other four should be back here any minute.“<br/>Christian nodded. Whizzer wanted him to leave.<br/>„So, you liked the show?“ he then asked.<br/>Whizzer nodded slowly, not even looking at the man in front of him, instead eyeing for his favorite theater nerd to come back so they could hit the road and make out in Marvin’s bedroom.<br/>Finally, his eyes found him. The financed major was coming back just now.</p>
<p>„There you are,“ Whizzer greeted him back, glad to have found an excuse to ignore Christian now for the most part, „Had some great chats with your high school acquaintances?“<br/>„T’was alright,“ Marvin shrugged, only then fully noticing that the male lead was currently trying to engage Whizzer in conversation. He then turned towards Christian, his posture almost deflated as he talked to the other student, almost reverential, „Oh, hey! You’re Christian, right? That’s your fifth time of playing the lead right?“<br/>He nodded, „Yeah,“ then he turned back to Whizzer, „Why don’t you introduce your friend?“<br/>„Oh, you know each other?“ Marvin tilted his head.</p>
<p>The Brunette let out a sigh.<br/>„So, this,“ he put his arm around Marvin’s shoulder, hoping the elder one would not be mad at him for it, „is Marvin. Marvin, I guess you know Christian?“<br/>„Pleasure to meet you, Marvin,“ Christian grinned, „I assume you’ve seen a few shows?“<br/>„Yeah,“ the finances major nodded, so far he didn’t complain about Whizzer’s arm, „I’ve seen every show since freshman year. Great work in all of them, honestly!“</p>
<p>Whizzer was so glad to see the girls approaching them again, giving him an excuse to politely tell Christian to leave them the fuck alone.<br/>„Are we ready to go, then?“ Mend asked.<br/>„Anyway, Christian,“ Whizzer exhaled, „We gotta go now. But it was great to talk to you again! See you around.“<br/>With that, he practically dragged Marvin away, the rest of the group following him, not really questioning his behavior.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0039"><h2>39. Toothbrush</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marvin is a sap and Whizzer is in love.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Welcome to today's dose of wholesome fluff!</p>
<p>Enjoy and stay safe!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„You alright?“ Marvin asked, looking up to the Brunette, who just nodded quickly and removed his arm off the shorter man’s shoulder again.<br/>„Just wanted to go home. Hey, you don’t mind me spending the night at yours, right?“<br/>„Never.“<br/>Whizzer smiled at his response, „I just thought it would be nice since it’s our last weekend together before I leave for Omaha next Friday.“<br/>„I’d like that,“ Marvin smiled.<br/>But no matter how adorable that was, Whizzer couldn't take him seriously when he zipped up that enormous jacket.</p>
<p>When they arrived at the parking lot, they all said their goodbyes, before Marvin and Whizzer got into the car together.<br/>„Hey, by the way,“ Marvin then began, „I didn’t know you were friends with Christian.“<br/>„Acquaintances, rather,“ Whizzer mumbled.<br/>„Do you have a class together or something?“<br/>„Uh, you remember the night we broke into the theater hall to take the picture?“ he continued talking when the other man made a noise of agreement, „I think I kinda mentioned him back then.“</p>
<p>Marvin remained silent for a few seconds, seemingly trying to remember when Whizzer could have possibility mentioned him. Then, he gasped.<br/>„Wait, that was <em>him</em>?!“<br/>Now it was Whizzer who made a noise of agreement.<br/>„Oh.“</p>
<p>„You okay, Marv?“ he then asked after another few seconds of silence.<br/>„...Uh, yeah, I guess I am,“ Marvin now seemed slightly distracted.<br/>„Because you seem a bit upset.“<br/>He exhaled loudly.<br/>„See, that’s the thing. I’m not really upset, I’m just a bit jealous. But like, I know that I shouldn’t let this out on you, also because it’s not really your fault, I guess?“<br/>„I can assure you, that you have no reason to be jealous. I’m not going anywhere.“<br/>„Yeah, I <em>rationally</em> know that. Like, I know you used to sleep around, but you don’t do that anymore, right?“<br/>„’Course not, duh.“<br/>„So I <em>rationally</em> know I don’t have anything to worry about. But I still do. It’s weird, I don’t know.<br/>But I felt like I had to let you know about it because I don’t want to lie about emotions.“</p>
<p>Whizzer nodded.<br/>„Thank you for letting me know.“<br/>That was different from their fight after racquetball practice. Not just different, it was a huge improvement.</p>
<p>„I started to talk to Mendel about bullshit like that,“ Marvin explained further.<br/>„You did?“<br/>„I told you, I don’t want to mess this up. So I’m working on it.“</p>
<p>Whizzer smiled.<br/>„That’s great. It really is, Marvin.“</p>
<p>A comfortable silence filled the car again, until „So, did that fuck try to hit on you?“<br/>„I think he did,“ the photography major laughed.<br/>„Oh my God, and I was so <em>nice</em> to him, you could have warned me about it.“<br/>„Didn’t you get the hint when I put my arm around your shoulder? So he’d see that I’m not available?“<br/>„Baby, I’m an oblivious moron, you should know that by now.“<br/>„Oh, of course, how could I possibly forget...“</p>
<p>„But you can do that more often. I mean, only if you want to,“ Marvin added then.<br/>„What, get hit on by other dudes with you now even noticing?“<br/>„Put your arm around my shoulder. I liked it, it was kinda nice.“</p>
<p>„Noted.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>About forty minutes later, the two men were standing in the small bathroom. Whizzer was taking out his contacts while Marvin opened the cupboard to get his toothbrush.<br/>„Hey, can I use your toothbrush tonight? Since I don’t have anything with me?“ the taller man asked.<br/>„Okay, now that’s just gross.“<br/>„We suck each other’s dicks on a regular basis but it’s gross to let me use your toothbrush?“ Whizzer raised his eyebrows, „Would you rather have me kiss you with incredibly disgusting breath tomorrow morning?“<br/>„I thought maybe you’d use your own toothbrush,“ Marvin explained and took a still wrapped one out of the cupboard, before closing its doors again.</p>
<p>„Oh my God you sap, did you buy me my own toothbrush?“ Whizzer giggled.<br/>„I was at the supermarket the other day and I thought <em>why not</em>,“ Marvin shrugged, blushing, „I don’t have any of your cremes or expensive hair products, but it’s a start, right?“<br/>„It’s amazing, Marv, I love it,“ Whizzer grinned and turned his head to press a kiss onto Marvin’s temple.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Marvin seemed to have fallen asleep already when Whizzer entered the bedroom. His steady breath was the only sound that could be heard in the room, set aside the usual background noise of New York City from outside.<br/>As noise-reduced as he could, Whizzer climbed over his lover and then under the blanket next to him. Turning onto his side, he then looked at Marvin in the dim light shining through the window.</p>
<p>Whizzer never really understood monogamy. Or relationships in general. He had a few in the past, but they were not really serious.<br/>Whizzer knew his boyfriends cheated on him and so did he.<br/>Two years ago, one night when he got really drunk with Deli and Mend, he started rambling about it and Mendel immediately started to come up with possible theories of why Whizzer thought that way. Neither he nor Deli judged him for it, though. Maybe for the cheating, but not for his lifestyle in general.<br/>And if you told Whizzer Brown at the beginning of Junior year that he’d fall head over heels for somebody, he would have laughed at you. Shaken his head in disbelief and opened Grindr or something.</p>
<p>Yet, there he was, staring at Marvin as if he was the most beautiful and precious thing in the entire world. Because, to Whizzer, he really was.<br/>Everything seemed to make sense somehow. All the fuss, the awful amount of romantic comedies on TV, and yes, even monogamy.</p>
<p>Absently, he dragged his hand through Marvin’s hair, playing with some curls between his fingers.<br/>„Stop to paw me,“ Marvin mumbled, shifting his head.<br/>„You were the one to cling onto my hand during the show,“ Whizzer teased.<br/>„It’s called <em>showing affection</em> and I suck at it, so take it or leave it.“<br/>„Nah, I take it.“<br/>„Great. Go to sleep,“ Marvin turned over, but he gently grabbed Whizzer’s arm to signal him to spoon him.<br/>„I’m still proud of you, y’know,“ he Brunette whispered into the other man’s ear and planted a kiss on the back of his head.</p>
<p>Whizzer couldn't tell if Marvin already fell asleep again or if he just smiled instead of responding. But he’d bet on the latter.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0040"><h2>40. I missed you</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Let's finally put a name on it.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Welcome to y'alls favorite emotional support fluff!<br/>Enjoy this chapter, support #blacklivesmatter, celebrate pride month (happy lesbian visibility day!), and stay safe! :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Marvin loved his parents, he really did. And he loved his brother.<br/>But goddammit, he couldn't wait to be back at college. The last days had felt like an eternity, maybe even two or three.<br/>And he missed his friends. But well, at least Trina lived nearby.<br/>He missed Whizzer. He was his friend as well, but also not. It, their thing, was still nameless. They would definitely need to talk about it soon. When Trina came over to ramble about what to get Mendel for their one-month-anniversary it hit Marvin like a truck, because his <em>thing</em> with Whizzer started the same night.</p>
<p>„You look worried, sweety,“ his mom noticed, eyeing him with motherly concern.<br/>The whole family sat together, having lunch, chatting joyfully. Marvin stopped listening about fifteen minutes ago, instead, he was racking his brain about the whole ‘no definition of the relationship’- thing.<br/>„Nah,“ he quickly shook his head, „I’m just kinda missing my friends. I mean don’t get me wrong, family time is great, but-“<br/>„Don’t worry, Marvin,“ his father gave him a wave, „You’re 21, we get it, we’re just not cool enough for you.“<br/>Dramatically, he pretended to wipe away a tear.</p>
<p>„Very funny, Dad,“ the theater nerd gave back, rolling back his eyes.<br/>„I think you’re very cool, Dad!“ Jason ensured him and patted his back.<br/>„You’re just saying that because they bought you a new chess set,“ the older brother huffed.<br/>„Actually, I think you’re the uncool one, Marvin,“ his younger sibling crossed his arms.<br/>„Ouch.“</p>
<p>„Hey, maybe you can get together on New Year’s Eve in Trina’s house?“ his mother proposed, still holding onto Marvin’s comment about missing his friends, „Her parents are coming over to celebrate with us, maybe you can invite some of your friends and you spend New Year’s Eve all together?“<br/>„Honey, maybe we should ask Lisa and Brian before we offer the kids to throw a party at their house,“ his father added.<br/>„I can talk to Trin about it later,“ Marvin said, he actually found the idea pretty nice, „I’m sure she’ll just ask her parents. If they aren’t comfortable with too many people, we can just hang out as the two of us. I mean, her parents know me, I don’t think they have a problem with that.“<br/>„Maybe you could invite Charlotte, too,“ his mother nodded.<br/>„We’ll have to ask her, I guess. She’s in Illinois because her girlfriend’s parents invited her to spend the holidays with them to get to know her.“</p>
<p>Marvin didn’t even notice that he basically just outed Charlotte in front of his parents, until right after he said it. Charlotte wouldn't have a problem with it though, he just didn’t know how his parents would react to that kind of information.</p>
<p>„That’s pretty sweet,“ his mother smiled, „If Trina’s parents are alright with it, you could invite her girlfriend over, too. Well, if you don’t hate her.“<br/>Marvin snorted.<br/>„I think nobody could <em>possibly</em> hate Cordelia, like ever.“</p>
<p>So, Marvin was 21 years old when he found out that his parents had absolutely no bad thoughts about gay relationships. That was certainly something to work with.<br/>But it also made Marvin feel slightly guilty, for still making a fuss out of it.</p>
<p>He took a short look at his phone. Trina had called him, which he didn’t notice until now because his phone hasn’t been unmuted since 1992. He’d call her back later.<br/>Whizzer had texted him, too.</p>
<p>„No phones at the dining table,“ Jason fluted.<br/>„I’m done eating, anyways,“ Marvin mumbled and got up from his chair.</p>
<p><strong>Whizzer:</strong> hey handsome<br/><strong>Whizzer:</strong> u free rn??<br/><strong>Whizzer:</strong> lets skype</p>
<p>„Marvin, didn’t you forget something?“ his mother asked.<br/>„Uh,“ Marvin hesitated for a second, „May I get up the table?“<br/>That felt silly, he was an adult after all. It was probably more about being a role model for Jason.<br/>„Fine, but please but your plate in the sink. Remember, it’s your turn with the dishes tonight.“<br/>He quickly typed his response.</p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> I won’t have telephone sex with you while I’m at my parents’ house.</p>
<p>„Whose text could be more important than a good meal eaten together with one’s family?“ his father asked.<br/>„Uh, just someone from college,“ Marvin gave back quickly and put his plate into the sink, „I’ll go back upstairs.“</p>
<p><strong>Whizzer:</strong> omg nooo<br/><strong>Whizzer:</strong> i just wanted to SEE u<br/><strong>Whizzer:</strong> because i LIKE u!<br/><strong>Whizzer:</strong> and i MISS u!!!<br/><strong>Whizzer:</strong> besides, man ur so boring..<br/><strong>Me:</strong> Thanks.<br/><strong>Me:</strong> I’ll call you in a minute.<br/><strong>Whizzer:</strong> ;)</p>
<p>Marvin practically stumbled up the stairs and shut his room door behind him, before he fell onto the bed and logged into Skype on his laptop.<br/>Whizzer picked up after three rings. It looked like he was sitting on his bed, cross-legged. He was wearing his glasses, and for some reason, there was a puppy on his lap, sleeping peacefully. A grin crept onto his face. Marvin felt his lips to curl into a soft smile, too.</p>
<p>„Heeeeeeeey honeypie,“ Whizzer’s high-pitched voice sounded through the speakers.<br/>„Okay, I’ll hang up again, bye“ Marvin immediately responded.<br/>„No, don’t,“ he whined like a little child, his hand buried in the puppy’s fur, „It’s good to see you.“<br/>Marvin felt himself blush.<br/>„It’s good to see you, too. I missed you,“ he then said sincerely.<br/>„Sap,“ Whizzer grinned, „But I missed you, too.“<br/>„Why is there a puppy in your lap?“<br/>„Jealous, Marvin?“<br/>„Totally,“ he deadpanned, „You didn’t tell me you had a dog.“</p>
<p>„Apparently, Mom got bored, now that all her kids left the house. So she got herself a puppy. We got replaced for a puppy, can you believe it?!“<br/>„A tragedy.“<br/>„But she is darn cute. Her name is Pie, she is a cocker spaniel. And she likes me best of all my siblings, so she’s in my room all the time,“ Whizzer rambled on proudly.<br/>„So, you’re a dog person?“ Marvin laughed.<br/>„Obviously. Oh Marvin, can we get a dog?“ he asked excitedly, „I’ll take care of it, you’ll only need to provide your apartment.“<br/>„I don’t think my landlord would approve.“<br/>„He sucks, then!“<br/>„I’m more of a cat person, anyway.“<br/>Whizzer tilted his head slightly.<br/>„We need to break up, then,“ he said with a deadly serious face.</p>
<p>Marvin wondered if that hypothetical break-up would imply they were boyfriends right now.</p>
<p>„Uh, hey, sorry for barging in with that, but did you talk to your parents yet?“ Whizzer then asked.<br/>„About what?“ Marvin stammered, „About us?“<br/>„About college. Y’know, about your major.“</p>
<p>Of course, that’s what he meant. Marvin promised to come clean to his parents about his feelings towards what he was majoring in. Not even because he wanted to throw away all the plans he had made for the future, but mostly just to get it off his chest. Maybe they’d come to an agreement.<br/>Still, Marvin was frightened by the thought of that conversation. He was terrified by the thought of possibly disappointing his parents.<br/>There had been that awkward „So, son, how’s college?“ small talk right after Marvin arrived, but he just responded some halfhearted lie and went upstairs to unpack.<br/>But that was not a thing to think about right now. Right now he’d rather look into Whizzer’s pretty face.</p>
<p>„No, not really. I will, I just haven’t found the right time, yet.“<br/>Whizzer nodded.<br/>„I’m not pressuring you, I’m just checking in.“<br/>„Thanks.“<br/>„Uh,“ Whizzer then said hesitantly, „So, <em>did</em> you tell them about us?“<br/>Marvin shook his head. Again, he couldn't help but feel guilty. „Sorry.“<br/>„Hey, don’t worry Baby,“ Whizzer ensured him quickly, „Just take your time.“</p>
<p>„Did you tell your mother and your sisters about us, though?“ Marvin asked cautiously.<br/>The photography major shrugged, „I might have mentioned a boy. A few times. Couldn’t continue talking once, because three women started teasing me for blushing.“<br/>Marvin smiled.<br/>„You sappy bastard.“<br/>„You <em>love</em> that, admit it, Marv!“ Whizzer laughed.</p>
<p>„I feel like they deserve to know it, somehow,“ Marvin confessed after a few seconds of silence, „My parents, I mean. I accidentally outed Charles at lunch today and it turns out they are totally fine with it. So, technically, I have no excuse anymore.“<br/>„You don’t owe <em>anyone</em> to come out to them if you don’t feel ready for it,“ Whizzer said with a serious face.</p>
<p>Marvin just made a noise of agreement. He knew all that, yet he felt guilty about it.<br/>„Let’s talk about something else,“ he then asked, looking at his hands.<br/>„Well, my sister Laura introduced us to her new partner a few days ago and of all the people ever dating one of my sisters, they are the first person I don’t despise.“<br/>„I can’t really see you as a protective brother, to be honest,“ Marvin admitted, slightly smiling.<br/>„I mean, I’m not <em>overly</em> protective,“ Whizzer ensured him, „Like, we’re all not that far apart age-wise. But I just never liked the people they brought home. You’ll get what I mean when your brother starts dating.“<br/>„Jason is 11! Last year he literally told me that he likes chess is better than love. He made a PowerPoint presentation about it.“<br/>„Yup, definitely your brother.“<br/>„Shut up.“<br/>„Make me.“</p>
<p>„That doesn’t work over Skype,“ Marvin huffed.</p>
<p>Then, one could hear Whizzer’s room door creak.<br/>„Andrew, is the dog in your room again?“ a female voice could be heard.<br/>„Don’t call me Andrew, I’m talking to someone,“ Whizzer gave back irritated, looking towards what Marvin assumed to be one of his sisters.<br/>„You gotta stop kidnapping Pie,“ she responded unimpressed.<br/>„Yes Andy, leave the poor dog out of it!“ Marvin was still rather amused about Whizzer’s real name.<br/>„Shut up Marvin,“ Whizzer groaned. He let out a squeal of dissatisfaction when his sister, who now made her way over to Whizzer’s bed, took hold of the cocker spaniel to lift it out of his lap.</p>
<p>„Who are you talking to?“ his sister then asked, holding the puppy in her arms and staring at the screen.<br/>Whizzer cleared his voice.<br/>„Marvin, may I introduce to you: my baby sister Laura, who came into my room to coldheartedly take the dog away from its favorite place to be, which is obviously my lap.<br/>Laura, this boy over here is Marvin.“<br/>„I’m his boyfriend,“ he blurted out. Just devoutly hoping, Whizzer would be okay with it.</p>
<p>„...Whose favorite place is my lap too, obviously,“ Whizzer added to it that, without any hesitation.<br/>„Urgh,“ Laura commented, „Did you just compare your boyfriend to mom’s puppy?“<br/>„They’re both cute and adore me,“ Whizzer explained as if it was the most logical conclusion there’s ever been.<br/>„Well then, nice to meet you, Marvin,“ the girl now looked back onto the screen, smiling into the camera, „So, you’re the other hand on Andrew’s lock screen?“<br/>„Hey, don’t snoop around in my phone!“<br/>„Maybe then don’t use pictures as your <em>lock screen</em> if you don’t want people to see them, duh.“<br/>„Did you just come up here to take Pie away from me and snoop around in my life?“<br/>„Kinda what I’m here for as your sister.“</p>
<p>It seemed like the sass was in the family.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0041"><h2>41. When are you coming back?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>What's a group video chat without sharing any exciting news?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Happy Pan-Pride y'alls!<br/>Enjoy this chapter, I had the idea for it <em>months</em> ago and now I finally get to upload it! I hope you like it even though it radiates a hell of chaotic energy. (Or, maybe that's exactly why you should like it?)</p>
<p>(TW for transphobia, just to be sure)</p>
<p>Stay safe!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„May I ask about your lock screen?“ Marvin asked grinning after Laura left the room again.<br/>„Oh my <em>God</em> don’t make a big deal out of it, I took a picture of our hands to send it to Deli and I liked it, it’s not that-“<br/>„I think it’s adorable.“<br/>„Alright there, <em>boyfriend</em>“ Whizzer mumbled, his lips curled into a teasing smile.<br/>Marvin inhaled, „I know we technically never talked about that. It just sort of came out of me. Was that okay?“<br/>Without any hesitation, the other man nodded.<br/>„Yeah, it was. Don’t worry about it, <em>boyfriend</em>.“</p>
<p>Man, Marvin really wanted to be near Whizzer right now. Maybe Whizzer would return before New Year’s Eve and they could all spend the evening together at Trina’s house? But well, he still had to talk to Trina about that first.</p>
<p>„Hey, when-“ he began but got interrupted by Whizzer’s phone ringing.<br/>„It’s Delia,“ the photography major explained after throwing a look at the display, „She probably just wants to vent about her family.“<br/>„Go take the call, don’t let poor Charles alone with venting Delia.“</p>
<p>„Yeah?“ Whizzer picked up the call.<br/>Short pause.<br/>„I’m good, my mom and my sisters want me to say hi, by the way. How about you two?“<br/>A bit longer pause.<br/>„I’m on Skype with my boyfriend,“ almost immediately after that, „Shut up.“<br/>Marvin furrowed his brows.<br/>„Marv, Cordelia, and Charles ask if they can join the call,“ Whizzer then asked, looking into his webcam again.<br/>Marvin shrugged.<br/>„Sure. I could add Trina, too, she called me anyways.“<br/>„Alright,“ Whizzer spoke into his phone again, „See you soon,“ then he hung up.</p>
<p>„Why did you tell them to shut up?“ Marvin tilted his head to the side.<br/>„Because both of them started yelling <em>Boyfriend counter</em>,“ the Brunette huffed, „There’s no way I’ll buy them coffee, I’d be broke in three days.“<br/>Marvin chose not to respond, but he started to grin heavily.<br/>„You better be quiet, you’d be broke in two!“ Whizzer bickered.</p>
<p>The theater nerd just grinned while he opened the menu to add Trina.<br/>„Hey boys!“ Delia’s overly excited voice sang through his speakers, „How are you guys doing?“<br/>„We’re amazing, how about you two?“ Whizzer answered for both of them.<br/>„My family likes Charles better than me, I swear to god.“<br/>„That is not true!“ Charlotte threw in, squeezing herself into the camera frame. The two of them were shown in high size, apparently, Cordelia was using Skype on her phone.<br/>„It is!“ Delia protested, „Whizz, you know how my brother always made fun of me for studying gender studies? Since I brought my soon-to-be doctor girlfriend into this house, he keeps teasing me like <em>well, at least one of you will be able to get a job after college</em>.“</p>
<p>„Your brother sounds like a dick“ Trina just had joined, „Hey, is Whizzer wearing glasses?“<br/>„Yes he is and isn’t it the cutest thing you have ever seen in your entire life?“ Marvin giggled.<br/>„Did Marvin just fangirl me?“ Whizzer asked, taking off the glasses and putting them onto the nightstand behind him.<br/>„That was definitely the same voice he uses when he talks about musical theater,“ Charles nodded knowingly.<br/>„You fucking enjoyed it!“ Marvin tried to defend himself.</p>
<p>„Guys, can I add Mend? He just texted me,“ Trina asked.<br/>„’ Course,“ Whizzer gave back quickly, „Is he alright being with his family?“<br/>„To quote him: <em>I’ll survive but I won’t promise Karen does</em>. His aunt is very annoying,“ she gave back.</p>
<p>„I hate boomers so much,“ Mendel greeted them shortly after.<br/>„There he is, how are things going, man?“ Whizzer promptly asked.<br/>Mendel inhaled deeply.<br/>„So, I came out to my parents 6 years ago and this year they didn’t misgender me once, not even accidentally. And I am really happy about that, obviously. And then, there’s my aunt Karen.“<br/>„Is your aunt actually called Karen?!“ Marvin ensured himself.</p>
<p>„Yes, the name says it all.<br/>So, we’re at lunch. And my cousin asks me who the girl on my lock screen is. So I go <em>Oh, that’s my girlfriend!</em> And my cousin just goes <em>Oh, alright, she’s really pretty</em> and I’m like <em>Yeah I know I’m really lucky</em>“<br/>Trina blushed slightly.<br/>„So basically just how every conversation goes when somebody mentions Trina towards you?“ Whizzer teased him.<br/>„Yes, but,“ Mendel proceeded, „Then Karen squinted at my phone, scoffed and went <em>Oh, I didn’t know</em> she then deadnamed me <em>was a lesbian</em>.“</p>
<p>„Bitch,“ Charles huffed.<br/>„Oh I’m so sorry sweety,“ Trina said simultaneously.<br/>„And then,“ Mendel started to smile, „I looked her dead in the eye and went like <em>Karen, could you please stop misgendering me on purpose, it’s just that it got really ridiculous since I started growing facial hair.</em>“<br/>„Sounds like something a king would say!“ Cordelia cheered.<br/>„She’s just another stupid boomer,“ Whizzer huffed, „Like, fuck her. She’ll die someday.“<br/>„That’s not a nice thing to say,“ Mendel said, „But she isn’t nice either, so whatever.“</p>
<p>„Wasn’t Karen the one that cheated on her husband, too?“ Cordelia asked then.<br/>„Yeah, that was her. Charming lady, isn’t she?“<br/>„On that note, guys I got some news about my roommate!“ Trina threw in.<br/>„Spill that tea, sis,“ Whizzer’s voice sounded about three octaves higher.<br/>„Did I hallucinate or did he really just say that?“ Marvin blinked.<br/>„I definitely just said that,“ the Brunette started to grin, „You got a problem with that, Marv?“<br/>„I’m just judging you because of it, that’s all. Now, Trina, you may proceed.“</p>
<p>„So, she just wanted to say goodbye to her boyfriend over the holidays, but it seemed like he wasn’t prepared that she’d suddenly appear at his dorm room. She caught him with another girl, and it turns out that <em>Caroline</em> just was the affair all the time. I feel so sorry for her, she cried for like 4 hours.“<br/>„She calls me like 6 times a day about it,“ Mendel groaned, „It got really annoying.“<br/>„Wait-“ Whizzer interfered, „my roommate just got dumped by his girlfriend because he was cheating on her and the girl bumped into them.“</p>
<p>It got silent for a second.</p>
<p>„No fucking way,“ Trina then said incredulously.<br/>„Speak of the devil,“ Mendel mumbled. „I’m getting another call. I’ll talk to you guys later.“<br/>Then the psychiatry major disconnected the video group chat.<br/>„So you’re noticing <em>now</em> that Caroline was dating Whizzer’s roommate all along?“ Charles asked amused.<br/>„I mean, what are the odds? Who could have foreseen this?“ Trina explained herself, „Oh my God Whizz I feel so sorry for you that you have to live with that guy. He’s such a dick.“<br/>„That’s probably the reason why Whizzer spends so much time at my apartment,“ Marvin chuckled.<br/>„Among other things,“ the photography major shrugged, „Things like actually enjoying to spend time with my boyfriend, for instance.“</p>
<p>„Oh my God, they <em>finally</em> use the B-word,“ Cordelia called out, „So, after avoiding it for solid 3 weeks, you accepted your fate called it by its name?“<br/>„You’re the one to talk, little Miss <em>I first want my friends’ approval</em>,“ Whizzer countered unimpressed.<br/>„But other than <em>you two</em>, we didn’t sleep with each other until-“ the Blonde started, but Marvin interrupted her rather quickly.<br/>„How about we talk about something entirely else now?“ he said, much to the other’s amusement.</p>
<p>„That’s kinda what we were talking about at the movie night, Marv,“ Charles laughed.<br/>„I just don’t want us to talk about things like this when my eleven-year-old brother could barge into my room without any warning,“ Marvin explained and crossed his arms.<br/>„I think especially you guys should be glad I wanted my friends to meet Charlotte first because otherwise you two probably wouldn’t have ever met again,“ Cordelia defended herself.<br/>„We would have met on campus someday,“ Whizzer objected.<br/>„I would have told you to piss off if you’d have tried to hit on me, Baby,“ Marvin threw in.<br/>„Oh my <em>God</em> Marvin, we’re boyfriends now, you need to choose my side during arguments!“</p>
<p>„Mend wants back into the video chat,“ Trina announced, and only seconds after that, the curly-haired male had joined them again.<br/>„Guys,“ Mendel was shouting, which he never really did, „I’m getting top surgery in June. They just called me. I’m getting top surgery!<br/>Guys!“</p>
<p>Trina was the first one to respond, „That’s amazing, honey, I’m so happy for you!“<br/>„Nice, man!“ Whizzer cheered, while Cordelia was just straight-up yelling out of happiness for her friend.<br/>„That’s amazing news, Mendel!“ Marvin agreed, „It really is!“ Charles added.<br/>„I’m just so relieved to finally have a date set,“ Mendel’s voice sounded so happy.</p>
<p>„Hey Cassie,“ Whizzer looked at where Marvin assumed the door to be, „Mendel got his date for top surgery!“<br/>„That’s great, tell him I said hi,“ his older sister replied, „Mom wanted me to bring the dog back upstairs. She peed on the carpet in the living room.“</p>
<p>„Oh, is that Pie?“ Cordelia squeaked when the puppy reappeared in the webcam.<br/>„So we’re just gonna ignore the fact that the dog peed on the carpet so Judy just sends him off to Whizzer?“ Mendel asked.<br/>„Yes, that’s Pie, I love her a lot and she sleeps in my bed every night“ Whizzer just ignored Mendel’s comment, „Still, it’s only a cold comfort for not having Marvin sleeping next to me.“</p>
<p>„Gross,“ Marvin deadpanned, „Absolutely disgusting. By the way, when are you coming back?“<br/>„On the 30th. Are we all gonna hang at Marv’s or Deli’s apartment for New Year’s Eve?“<br/>„I have a better idea,“ Trina threw in, „Apparently, my parents are going to Marvin’s house to celebrate with his parents, so maybe we could all hang at my house. Depending on when you all come back to New York, though.“</p>
<p>„What, are your parents, like, besties?“ Whizzer asked amused.<br/>„Our families spend almost every thanksgiving together for like five years now,“ Trina laughed, „Sometimes I wonder if they bitch about us the way we bitched about them in high school some time.“</p>
<p>„Marvin?“ a small voice outside the door sounded.<br/>„What is it?“ he asked.<br/>„Can I come in?“<br/>„Is it Jason?“ Trina asked curiously, „Let him in, I wanna say hi!“<br/>The finances major sighed.<br/>„Yeah, come in.“</p>
<p>„What are you doing?“ the kid asked after closing the door behind him again.<br/>„I’m on Skype, Trina wants me to say hi.“<br/>„I don’t want you to say hi, I wanna say hi myself, Marvin!“ Trina objected, „Call him to you!“<br/>„He’s not a dog, Trin,“ Charles chuckled.<br/>„Oh, hey Trina!“ Jason ran over to the bed to look at the screen, „How are you? Hey Charlotte.<br/>And who are all these other people?“<br/>„They are my friends from college,“ Marvin explained patiently, „This guy there with the curly hair is Mendel, the girl with Charles is Cordelia and the boy with the puppy is called Whizzer.“<br/>„I didn’t know you had more friends than Trina and Charlotte.“</p>
<p>The others burst out into laughter, while Marvin just glared at his little brother, who now sat down next to him on the bed.<br/>„Thanks, Jase, why are you here?“<br/>„So Jason, how are you doing? How is school?“ Trina completely ignored Marvin, still giggling over Jason’s comment.<br/>„I’m alright, thanks for asking!“ the boy chirped.<br/>„You got a girl or a boy in your class that you like?“ the biology major continued asking.<br/>„Oh my God Trina, he is 11, he likes <em>chess</em> better than girls,“ Marvin interfered but he got corrected by his brother.<br/>„Actually, I have a girlfriend now! Her name is Heather Levin and we hold hands every lunch break. But I didn’t tell Mom and Dad about it, so,“ he put his finger onto his lips, signaling all of them to tell nobody else about his scandalous affair with the girl.</p>
<p>„Hey, why didn’t you tell me about that, Buddy?“ Marvin asked, looking at Jason.<br/>„You didn’t ask,“ he just shrugged, „Can we play some chess together? I’m bored.“<br/>„I’m still talking to my friends, Jase.“<br/>„Marvin, for God’s sake please go play chess with your little brother,“ Whizzer glared at his boyfriend through the camera, „I can call you again tonight or so.“<br/>„See, Whizzer wants you to play with me, too!“ Jason crossed his arms.</p>
<p>„Thank you for that, Whizz,“ Marvin mumbled, „Alright, then bye guys, I guess. Just text me about New Year’s Eve, then?“<br/>„We will, Marv, don’t worry,“ Charles ensured him, „Have fun playing chess.“</p>
<p>„I like your new friends,“ Jason admitted after Marvin closed his laptop.<br/>„Me too,“ the theater nerd smiled. Then, he took a deep breath, „What do you think of Whizzer?“<br/>„He told you to play chess with me so he’s kinda cool,“ the boy shrugged, „Why?“</p>
<p>„He’ll probably be coming over around New Year’s Eve.”<br/>„Cool,“ Jason got up from the bed, “You coming?“</p>
<p>„Hey, Jase? He’s my boyfriend, Whizzer, I mean. He is my boyfriend.“<br/>„You didn’t tell me about your boyfriend until now, why did you expect me to tell you about my girlfriend?“ Jason asked with furrowed brows.</p>
<p>Marvin’s mouth curled into a smile.<br/>„Well, we’re even now, are we?“</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Yes, I decided that Cordelia majors in Gender Studies.<br/>See u guys in the comments!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0042"><h2>42. I need to talk to you</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>There are many conversations you don't really want to have, but sometimes they are just necessary.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After Jason got sent to bed, Marvin still sat in the living room with his parents. He had to talk to them. About everything. About College, about Whizzer.<br/>Now. Because it had to be done someday.</p>
<p>„Uh, I talked to Trina, she said we could all spend new years eve at hers,“ Marvin informed his parents, playing with the hem of his pullover, „It’ll just be us, Charles and three other people from college.“<br/>„That sounds nice, Honey. We’re happy that you found some new friends,“ his mother smiled briefly at him and looked back at the TV then.<br/>Marvin nodded, „Me too.“</p>
<p>„How come, do you have class together with them?“ his father asked, barely looking up from his magazine.<br/>„No, uh, it’s mostly because of Charles and Cordelia. When they started dating, our groups kinda emerged.“<br/>Marvin decided not to go into detail about the night that started it all.<br/>„It’s good to hear that Charlotte found somebody. She’s such a nice girl,“ Mrs. Philipps said, „Hey, she should just let me know if she needs any internships at the hospital, I can pull some strings.“<br/>„I’ll let her know. Thanks, Mom.“<br/>Silence.</p>
<p>„So, Trina’s parents will come over for New Year’s Eve? You guys having anything planned?“ Marvin asked awkwardly.<br/>„Drinking wine and trying not to pass out before midnight,“ Mr. Philipps chuckled, „Now that you’re all 21 you’re probably gonna go wild, aren’t ya?“<br/>„I guess we’re just gonna hang, maybe watch the Time Square show on TV.“</p>
<p>Marvin tried to imagine their night. They’d probably have a few drinks together, listen to music, ramble on about life, and <em>oh God he’s gonna kiss Whizzer for midnight</em>.<br/>He counted the days when he could see Whizzer again.</p>
<p>„Uh, by the way, is it alright if someone stays here for a few days? Charles and Cordelia called dibs on Trina’s guestroom, and Mendel is gonna stay at hers too.“<br/>„Sure, who is it?“<br/>„His name is Whizzer. He’s a photography major.“<br/><em>And my boyfriend, but I’m too afraid to tell you.</em></p>
<p>„Fine by us,“ his mother shrugged, „Should Jason sleep in your room so he can have Jason’s room to stay in?“<br/>Marvin quickly shook his head, „No, he can sleep in my room.“<br/>„Sure, Jason’s gonna be glad not having to give his room.“<br/>Silence, again.</p>
<p>„Okay, I need to talk to you.“<br/>Now, finally, both looked up and looked at Marvin with concern in their faces.<br/>„Marvin, Honey, what’s wrong?“ his mother asked, reaching for the remote control to mute the TV.<br/>„You didn’t get somebody pregnant, did you?“ his father asked.<br/>„What? No, oh my God, don’t worry about that,“ Marvin shook his head, „It’s about college. And it’s nothing too bad, I just wanted to talk to you about it.“</p>
<p>His pulse went wild. He wondered if his heart ever beat that fast.</p>
<p>„Go on, Honey, you can talk to us,“ Mrs. Philipps ensured him.<br/>„I’m not really, uh, <em>enjoying</em> my classes. I mean, at all. I thought it was just college, like that’s just how it was supposed to be. But I’m good at it if I study and put enough effort into it. So I went on for the last years.<br/>But a few weeks ago, Whizzer asked me if I even liked what I did and I eventually came to the conclusion that I don’t. Now, I know that it’d be crazy to just stop now, in junior year. But I know that it’s not what I want to do for the rest of my life. And maybe I’ll just take a job as a waiter and go to community college after I graduate from NYU? I don’t really know yet.<br/>Well, my point is just that I don’t want to disappoint you for doing something else suddenly. And I hope that you can still support me.“</p>
<p>Another thick silence went over the room, the only thing Marvin could hear was his pumping heart.</p>
<p>„Marvin, we will always love and support you, no matter what you decide to do,“ his mother then said in that special way only mothers could, „And I am so sorry that you ever had to have any doubts about that fact.“<br/>„You’re an adult, after all, we’re not the ones to tell you how to live your life. If you’re not happy with what you’re doing, we will do everything possible to change that fact,“ his father agreed.<br/>„So, what are your next steps?“ his mother asked.<br/>„I don’t know,“ Marvin just started to laugh out of relief „I didn’t expect to get this far, to be honest. So, you’re okay with it?“<br/>„Kid, we really just want you to be happy,“ Mr. Philipps said, „And if you ever need help or advice with anything, you can always call us.“</p>
<p>Marvin really needed some time to process everything his parents just told him.</p>
<p>„Thanks, guys,“ he then said plainly, a smile on his face.<br/>„Of course, Sweety!“ his mother responded kindly, „Do you have anything else to get off your chest?“</p>
<p>Marvin felt amazing.<br/>„Actually yeah! Uh, it’s about Whizzer,“ he started, „He’s gay. But you don’t have a problem with that, I guess.“<br/>„’ Course not,“ his father huffed, „Why should we? Every one of your friends is welcome here.“<br/>„About that, well, he’s not just-“ the college student started to stutter, „We’re… He’s my boyfriend.“</p>
<p>A pause.</p>
<p>„Mom, Dad, I’m gay.“</p>
<p>Silence.<br/>Then, „Does Trina know?“</p>
<p>„What th-, why-“ Marvin stammered, looking at his father in confusion, „Yes she does, I came out to her when we started college. Why-“<br/>„So,“ his mother asked slowly, „You and Trina, you’re not dating?“<br/>„What? No. She’s dating Mendel.“</p>
<p>His parents exchanged looks before they began laughing.<br/>„We just thought you were dating Trina for years,“ his mother then confessed.<br/>„I’m not. She’s my best friend and I love her, but not that way.“<br/>„That’s certainly good to know,“ Mr. Philipps said.</p>
<p>„Don’t you wanna say something about me literally just coming out to you?“ Marvin asked after a few seconds.<br/>„Do you want us to say anything?“ his mother asked, „We love you no matter what, you know that, Honey. And, of course, we’re very excited to meet your boyfriend.“</p>
<p>Mr. Philipps opened his magazine again.<br/>„And don’t worry, we’re gonna be extra careful to knock before we enter your room.“<br/>„Dad!“<br/>„What?“</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>By the way, Beth and Robert Philipps say <em>Black Lives Matter</em>, and if they say it it must be true!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0043"><h2>43. That is so adorable</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Long time no see. (And by long time, two weeks are meant.)</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Me:</strong> about to board the plane now<br/><strong>Me:</strong> ill text u when i landed<br/><strong>Me:</strong> cant wait to c u again tbh<br/><strong>Me:</strong> 💖<br/><strong>Marviii🖤:</strong> :)</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Marviii🖤:</strong> I’m on my way to the airport.<br/><strong>Marviii🖤:</strong> If I didn’t text again when you read this, I’m still driving, just so you know. </p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Marviii🖤:</strong> I’m there now.<br/><strong>Marviii🖤:</strong> I’m waiting in the arrivals hall.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> we landed<br/><strong>Me:</strong> thank god<br/><strong>Me:</strong> i hate flying so much<br/><strong>Me:</strong> u better feel special that i get on a plane just to c u.<br/><strong>Marviii🖤:</strong> You’d have taken the plane back to New York anyway, don’t make a scene now.<br/><strong>Me:</strong> ur mean<br/><strong>Me:</strong> y ur so mean<br/><strong>Me:</strong> i deserve a man who cherishes me every day 😤<br/><strong>Marviii🖤:</strong> I’m happy to do that, at least when you’re not being overly dramatic.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It was a mystery to Whizzer why the people in front of him couldn't move any faster. Didn’t they have people waiting for them? Didn’t they want to see their significant other again?<br/>What did Whizzer have his long legs for, if there were always people in front of him that appeared to have the leg length of a dachshund?</p>
<p>„Move, lady,“ he muttered under his breath, not even loud enough for the elderly woman to hear it. He didn’t want to be impolite, after all. He just wanted to see Marvin again.</p>
<p><strong>Me:</strong> almost at the arrivals hall</p>
<p>After another 20 seconds that felt like 6 months, he finally decided to run past the woman when the chance occurred. Pulling his suitcase after him, he finally entered the hall.<br/>It didn’t take much time to look for Marvin. When their eyes locked, he started smiling and Whizzer felt his lips curl into a grin, too.<br/>His stomach began to tingle and for a moment he forgot the airport and the people around him.</p>
<p>„Hey you,“ Whizzer said smoothly, now standing in front of his boyfriend again.<br/>„Hey,“ Marvin responded quietly, only breaking their eye contact for a quick gaze at his lips.<br/>Then, he pulled Whizzer into a tight embrace. The taller man needed no second invitation to wrap his arms about Marvin, pulling him close.</p>
<p>„Wanna go and make out in your car?“ he whispered after a solid minute of just standing in the middle of the arrivals hall, inhaling each other’s scents and feeling the other’s closeness.<br/>„You bet,“ Marvin responded and loosened his grip around Whizzer’s waist, „How are you?“</p>
<p>„Well, I hate plains from the bottom of my heart, yet I came to the conclusion that it can be worth it if the right person picks you up from the airport,“ he gave back, took hold of his suitcase again, and started walking alongside Marvin.<br/>„You always call me a sap, yet you say things like that.“<br/>„I was just stating a fact, nothing less.“<br/>„Yeah, a fact dressed as a sappy comment about being happy to see me again.“<br/>„Should I lie?“</p>
<p>Marvin turned his head slightly to look at his boyfriend from the side.<br/>„God, I missed you,“ he then mumbled, a little smile plastered onto his face.<br/>„And you get to spend the next five days with me, non-stop, before we get back to campus,“ Whizzer grinned, „Looking forward to that?“<br/>Marvin didn’t respond. He just nudged his hand again Whizzer’s, like on accident, and interlaced their pinkies, just those.</p>
<p>The photography major burst out into laughter.<br/>„Oh my God Marv, that’s-“<br/>„I’m trying to be cute over here, I need you to work with me, asshole!“ Marvin blushed slightly, but he didn’t pull his hand away.<br/>„Oh my <em>God</em>, you are <em>so</em> cute, really, that is <em>so adorable</em> I can’t.“</p>
<p>Whizzer kept on giggling until they were at Marvin’s car. The older one kept throwing glances at his boyfriend, but he never let go, even after many annoyed sighs and mutters.<br/>He only let go when he had to open the trunk for Whizzer’s suitcase.</p>
<p>„Fuck, what’s in there? This thing is <em>heavy</em>,“ he wheezed as he lifted it.<br/>„Did you really expect anything else, Honey?“ Whizzer chuckled, half-heartedly helping his boyfriend with the luggage.<br/>„Fair point,“ Marvin threw the trunk door shut and made his way to the driver’s door.</p>
<p>When Whizzer closed the door to his side of the car, he already felt his boyfriend looking at him from the side.<br/>„What? Do you want to tell me how much you missed me, again?“ he asked amused.<br/>„Well, you promised me a make-out session in my car, and,“ the older boy looked around, seemingly trying to prove his point, „we’re in my car now, soooo...“<br/>Whizzer laughed before leaning in to press his lips onto Marvin’s.</p>
<p>The older one let out a content sigh before burying his left hand in the other boy’s hair.<br/>Whizzer wrapped his arm around his boyfriend’s neck and smiled against his lips as he pulled him closer.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>After a solid 10 minutes of arguing over the AUX-Cord, Whizzer won and victoriously plugged his phone in. Which meant that he had to listen to Marvin complaining about his music taste for one hour and a half, but Whizzer just tried to sing against it. Which led his boyfriend to just shake his head and sigh.<br/>In general, Whizzer was not the most pleasant person to have on the passenger seat. He was very aware of that, but he couldn't resist annoying the shit out of Marvin.</p>
<p>When they stopped at a red light in the suburb Marvin’s family lived in, Whizzer just leaned in to kiss Marvin’s neck, like he did when they first hooked up. He already tried that while they were still on the highway, which just led to Marvin yelling at him.<br/>This time, he let out a muffled gasp.<br/>Then, „Not that great of a plan to give me a hickey right before you meet my parents.“<br/>„Is that your way of asking me to stop?“<br/>„It’s my way of reminding you that an awful lot of people I went to high school with, live in this suburb, and could easily recognize me and a pretty boy sucking my neck in the car.“</p>
<p>„Would that be so bad?“ Whizzer asked and let off his neck, raising his gaze to look Marvin in the eyes now instead.<br/>The theater nerd huffed.<br/>„No,“ he then said, an unintentional undertone of insecurity swung with it, „I just don’t think they <em>have</em> to know that I now have an incredibly attractive boyfriend. An incredibly attractive boyfriend who’s that horny that he tried to seduce me in the airport’s parkade.“</p>
<p>„I haven’t seen you in two weeks, what did you expect?“ the Brunette defended himself.<br/>„Fair“ Marvin looked up to the photography major and pressed a haste kiss onto his lips, „But I mean, we got the next few days to make up for it.“</p>
<p>„It’s green, by the way,“ Whizzer pointed at the traffic light, his lips curled into a smile, „How long until we’re there?“<br/>„Uh,“ Marvin took his eyes off his boyfriend and looked back onto the streets, „Not long. Five minutes or so.“<br/>„Can’t wait to meet Robert and Beth Philipps,“ the younger one grinned, „And little Jason, of course.“<br/>„Jason thinks you’re cool just because you told me to go play chess with him when we were on Skype.“<br/>„He’s not wrong, I am cool.“<br/>„Did you know that usually, the ones that claim that they are cool, are not right in that assumption?“<br/>„Did you know that people who call their boyfriends uncool are at a higher risk to be dumped than those who agree?“</p>
<p>Marvin pulled up a driveway. Whizzer just boldly assumed it to be the one in front of the house his family lived in.<br/>„There we are,“ he then breathed after pulling the handbrake and shutting down the engine, „Uh, Baby, are you… Are you nervous to meet my parents?“<br/>Whizzer shrugged, „Maybe a bit. I never met somebody’s parents,“ he then admitted, „But hey, both Delia’s and Mendel’s parents love me.“<br/>Marvin’s lips curled into a smile while his fingers were tapping nervous rhythms on the steering wheel.<br/>Gently, Whizzer took the other boy’s right hand in his left.<br/>„How about you?“ he then asked, stroking the back of the theater nerd’s hand.</p>
<p>„I’m nervous that they see you and suddenly realize that I <em>really</em> am gay. They were totally cool when I came out to them and somehow that freaks me out. It’s just stupid, I guess.“<br/>„It’s not stupid, Marv,“ the Brunette shook his head, „Should we wait outside for another few minutes?“</p>
<p>Marvin closed his eyes and exhaled.<br/>„No, it’s all gonna be fine.“<br/>„Let’s go then?“<br/>Again, Marvin hesitated.<br/>„What?“ his boyfriend asked, now slightly concerned.<br/>„Uh, you know, I just think another kiss before we get out the car wouldn’t do any harm.“</p>
<p>Whizzer didn’t have to be asked twice.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0044"><h2>44. I don't need a cat then, I have you</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Welcome to our humble place!</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„Hey guys, I’m back,“ Marvin shouted right after closing the door behind Whizzer, „Uh, <em>we’re</em> back.“<br/>„I’m in the kitchen, Honey,“ a female voice sounded back.<br/>„No welcome committee?“ Whizzer asked quietly, just loud enough for his boyfriend to hear.<br/>„Would you rather have my whole family awaiting you with a banner that says <em>Welcome to our home, dear man who is currently sleeping with our son</em> slash <em>brother</em>?“ the theater nerd asked back, his voice just as low.<br/>„It would be too easy to write <em>Boyfriend</em>, right?“<br/>„My parents can be very blunt, if anybody would write something like that on a banner, it would be them.“<br/>„They sound great already.“</p>
<p>They abandoned Whizzer’s suitcase in the hall, for now, instead, Marvin gently took his wrist to guide him towards the kitchen area.<br/>Marvin’s mother looked exactly like Whizzer imagined her. Well, to be fair he had seen some photos before.<br/>She had brown curls, just as her son, and next to her, even the theater nerd looked a little bit tall.<br/>Animated by the steps that sounded on the floor she turned her head to take a first look at the boy her son had brought home. Her eyes looked similar to Marvin’s, but Whizzer couldn't really tell because he didn’t wear his contacts for the flight and took off his glasses before they left the car.</p>
<p>Immediately, Marvin let go of Whizzer’s wrist, now awkwardly fumbling around with his hands.<br/>„Uh, mom,“ he then brought out, „That’s Whizzer. Uh, Andrew.<br/>Well, I’ve already shown you pictures, so there shouldn’t be any surprise, I guess.“<br/>„Oh, he’s so tall!“ was the first thing Mrs. Philipps said while eyeing Whizzer from head to toe, which made him more uncomfortable than he’d ever admit, „I did not notice that when you showed me the pictures.“</p>
<p>„It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Philipps,“ Whizzer said with a smile, stretching out his hand towards the woman. That sounded like something appropriate to say when first meeting your boyfriend’s mother, he thought.<br/>„You can call me Beth, dear,“ she took his hand in both of hers and pressed it firmly, „It’s so great that we get to meet you,“ she let go of Whizzer’s hands and now looked at her son, „Dad is still upstairs at his desk and Jason is in his room. And dinner is ready in 20 minutes, just so you two know.“</p>
<p>„Whose turn is it to do the dishes today?“ Marvin asked casually.<br/>„Jason’s.“<br/>„God, Whizzer will see my little brother throw a tantrum the first day he’s here.“<br/>„I got two sisters, Marv,“ the taller boy reminded his boyfriend, „I know how little siblings can be.“<br/>„You and Laura are only one year apart, that doesn’t really count,“ he replied and put his hand on Whizzer’s back to guide him out of the kitchen.</p>
<p>The photography major just pretended to not see how Marvin’s mother pointed at him when he just left the room and showed Marvin a thumbs up.</p>
<p>„Let’s go upstairs to bring your stuff away,“ the theater nerd proposed after following Whizzer back into the hall. The Brunette swore to have seen a light blush on Marvin’s cheeks.<br/>„Can’t wait to see your room,“ he started grinning, „I bet it’s super nerdy and awkward.“<br/>„Shut up.“<br/>„Make me.“<br/>„Oh my God, why are you such a teasing little shit?“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Somehow they managed to bring Whizzer’s ridiculously heavy suitcase upstairs.<br/>Marvin briefly showed Whizzer around, which basically meant that he pointed at doors and named rooms.<br/>„Dad’s office,“ the closed-door right next to the stairs, „He only shuts the door when he’s in a conference call, usually it’s only ajar when he’s inside. This one is my parent’s bedroom,“ he pointed at the door right opposite.</p>
<p>„I guess it was hard to sneak out at night with your parent’s bedroom right by the stairs.“<br/>„Bold of you to assume I ever sneaked out,“ Marvin huffed.</p>
<p>Suddenly, a boy burst out of one of the three other rooms, looking up at the two of them, his gazed switching between the theater nerd and the Brunette.<br/>„You’re Whizzer!“ he then exclaimed.<br/>„Yeah, I am!“ the addressed one confirmed, a smile on his face, „You’re Jason, are you?“<br/>The child nodded eagerly, „So, you and Marvin are boyfriends?“</p>
<p>Hesitantly, Marvin put his arm around Whizzer’s waist.<br/>„Yes we are,“ he then nodded, „Whizzer will stay for a few days until we both go back to college.“<br/>„That’s cool. Whizzer, can you play chess?“ the 11-year-old asked with big eyes.<br/>„Uh, not really,“ the photography major admitted, „Your brother tried to teach me but I’m not really good.“<br/>„I can try to teach you, too!“ the kid started to grin, „I just started a game, maybe you can join me and-“</p>
<p>„Hey buddy, don’t you wanna go downstairs to help Mom with preparing dinner?“ the older brother proposed.<br/>Jason started to pout.<br/>„Why do I have to help but you don’t?“<br/>„Because I have to show my guest around.“<br/>„That sucks,“ the younger brother murmured.<br/>„Language,“ Marvin warned him, but Jason already turned around to go downstairs.</p>
<p>„<em>Language</em>,“ Whizzer imitated his boyfriend as soon as the child was out of earshot, „That’s adorable, really.“<br/>„So,“ Marvin ignored this comment, instead he opened the door they now stopped in front of, „This is my room.“</p>
<p>„These are many cast recordings“ was Whizzer’s first reaction, pointing at the shelf full of CDs, „But I can’t say I’m surprised.“<br/>„And I’m not surprised that the first thing you do when you first see my room, is to make fun of it,“ Marvin replied and closed the door behind them.</p>
<p>His room was actually not as nerdy as Whizzer imagined it to be.<br/>Sure, the shelf was packed with dozens of cast recordings and a big pile of playbills. But other than that, the room actually looked kind of empty.<br/>A bed, a desk, a wardrobe. Not many pictures or personal things.<br/>At the corkboard, besides some documents, charts, and timetables, there was one single picture of him and Trina at what appeared to be their prom.<br/>(Whizzer bet that Trina made him hang that up.)</p>
<p>„I’m not someone to decorate a lot,“ Marvin explained, following Whizzer’s skeptical gazes around the room.<br/>„I mean, if we ever move in together that just means that I have more space to hang up photography and other stuff,“ Whizzer replied faster than he could think about it. Not until after saying that he noticed how serious their relationship sounded all of a sudden.</p>
<p>Hell, they haven’t even been dating for a month. Only a few days ago they finally started calling each other boyfriends. How could Whizzer already think about moving in together?<br/>He thought the same when they were talking about the dog a few days ago. What the hell made him think about these domestic things? And how came Marvin didn’t even seem frightened by the thought of Whizzer and him moving in with each other, adopting a pet, spending their lives together?</p>
<p>„Do whatever you want,“ the shorter boy started to laugh and stumbled towards his lover, throwing his arms around his upper body and pressing his cheek against Whizzer’s upper back, „But I want to adopt a cat. Or two.“<br/>„I’m with you completely, but consider: Dogs,“ the taller one gave back and put his hands on Marvin’s.<br/>„Dogs are more work. Cats just need cuddles and food once in a while.“<br/>„I don’t need a cat then, I have you.“<br/>„You suck.“<br/>„Maybe not now, how about after dinner?“</p>
<p>„I hate you.“<br/>„You don’t.“<br/>„Yeah, I don’t.“</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0045"><h2>45. Morning, Mom</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>I was taught never brag or shout</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Marvin awoke on the morning of 2019’s very last day, he was surprised to find himself alone in his bed. Usually, he was the one to wake up early while Whizzer could sleep til noon.<br/>This time, his boyfriend was nowhere to be seen. Even though it was not even 10am.<br/>The mattress was already cold again, implying that Whizzer must have left a while ago.</p>
<p>Marvin sat up and stretched before he jumped out of bed and got dressed. He was about 90% sure that, no matter what he decided to wear, Whizzer would make him change before they went to Trina’s house tonight, so he didn’t bother much. He just missed his favorite hoodie, the red one. He was sure that he didn’t leave it back at his apartment, which only left Whizzer as a possible hoodie thief.</p>
<p>That would make sense, he seemed to love that hoodie more than Marvin did. Whenever he slept at Marvin’s apartment (which must have been at least 3 times a week, by now) he snatched the dark red jacket to wear while he made breakfast. Whizzer forbade the theater nerd to make pancakes or any other kind of breakfast food by himself after he burned his first pancake-attempt that badly that they had to open every window in the apartment before deciding to get breakfast outside.<br/>Since then, Marvin would only sit there in his chair, watching his incredibly hot boyfriend wearing his clothes and wondering what he did to deserve that.<br/>He never said that out loud though. He only complained about Whizzer stealing his things constantly. He only got to hope that Whizzer got it anyway.</p>
<p>When Marvin left his room, he heard some voices downstairs from the living room. It sounded like a very enthusiastic Jason explained to somebody, which chess move would be the most strategic now. Since both his parents already knew how to play chess, Marvin just assumed that the person in question was his lover.<br/>His assumptions got proven right when he heard Whizzer’s voice responding. He sounded tired, he probably didn’t have his first cup of coffee yet.</p>
<p>By now, Marvin had figured out that the man needed coffee to function properly. After Whizzer confessed that he didn’t really like the instant-coffee Marvin had found in the kitchen cupboard, they went through a bunch of different brands to find one that Whizzer genuinely liked.<br/>‘At least it’s not black tea’, the photography major had sighed after the fifth brand that turned out to be okay-ish but still not really <em>it</em>.<br/>‘You just don’t know what’s good, that’s probably why you’re stuck with me,’ Marvin had chuckled before he took a sip of his own morning beverage.<br/>‘Baby, you can believe me, if I wouldn't want to be with you I wouldn't even <em>try</em> getting to like instant coffee,’ the other boy had given back.</p>
<p>„Morning Mom,“ Marvin greeted his mother in the kitchen, where she sat on the dining table, nipping on her tea and reading one of her novels.<br/>„Good Morning Honey, if you’re looking for Whizzer, Jason is teaching him how to play chess,“ Beth Philipps replied and closed the book in front of her. „Since when do you drink coffee?“<br/>Marvin looked up from the coffee machine (which he never used once in his life, actually his father was the only person in the household to use it).<br/>„I don’t, but Whizzer does. I heard him from upstairs and he sounded tired, so I thought I could bring him some. I just don’t know how this thing works...“<br/>„Better not tell him that Dad only drinks decaf,“ the nurse recommended and got up from the table to help her son with the machine, „The placebo effect is gonna do its job, probably.“</p>
<p>„Why would Dad drink this stuff if there isn’t any caffeine in it?“ Marvin furrowed his brows.<br/>„I have no idea,“ his mom, ever the tea-fanatic, shrugged, „He started buying decaf coffee around two months ago, I bet that he’ll get back to normal coffee around February.“</p>
<p>„I thought about buying one of those tiny, manual coffee makers for Whizzer because he keeps complaining about having to drink instant coffee when he stays at my apartment,“ Marvin said while he observed his mom setting up the machine, „Maybe I’ll gift it to him for Valentines Day if we’re still together then.“<br/>„Wow, don’t you sound optimistic?“ Mrs. Philipps chuckled, „Why wouldn’t you? If I may say that as your mother, you look pretty much in love.“</p>
<p>Marvin turned away to hide the red hue on his cheeks, instead, he took two mugs out of the cupboard.<br/>„I mean, it’s been a few weeks yet, Valentine’s Day is more than one more month away. A lot can happen in a month.“</p>
<p>He thought back how it took less than a month for him to develop his crush on Whizzer.</p>
<p>„I’ve been meaning to ask you,“ Beth started the coffee machine, „Why didn’t you just tell us earlier about you two?“<br/>Marvin poured himself some tea from the teapot that was sitting on the dining table, before sitting down.<br/>„Uh, I don’t really know. It didn’t feel like something to discuss on the phone,“ he mumbled, „I didn’t know how you’d react, after all. We never really talked about the whole...“ he hesitated, looking for the right words.<br/>„Gay thing?“ his mother tried to fill the gap at the end of his sentence, „I guess we never thought about it. We just never felt like we needed to address it. I have to say, we could have made it more clear that we don’t have any problem with it.“<br/>„It’s fine,“ Marvin shook his head, „I mean, if you’d have brought it up a few years ago, I would have been incredibly annoyed by it, probably.“</p>
<p>„So...“ now his mother was the hesitant one, probably just not wanting to be insensitive, „Is Whizzer your first boyfriend?“<br/>Marvin started to grin.<br/>„Sort of. Uh, I kind of dated someone from theater class in Senior Year. Not for long, though. I still had some inner demons to fight, so that wasn’t really the best time to have a relationship.“<br/>Mrs. Philipps nodded.<br/>„So, how did you and Whizzer meet?“<br/>Marvin blinked a few times, trying to figure out if it was the best idea to just tell his mom what role alcohol played in their history.</p>
<p>„Ah, you were both drunk,“ she understood without any more words needed.<br/>„That is not correct!“ his son disagreed, „I mean, Whizzer was. But we only really got to know each other because of Charles and Cordelia, and then Trina and Mendel started going on dates so we were sort of stuck with each other.“<br/>„Did I ever tell you how your Dad and I got together?“<br/>„Yeah, you went to high school together, didn’t you?“</p>
<p>„That’s only half of the story. We had a few classes together in high school, but we didn’t really talk a lot. So, a few years later, in college, we met again because we were at the same house party.<br/>I had way too many drinks, so when I spotted him in the garden, I went up to him and tried to talk to him. But before I managed to bring out one word, I threw up, right onto the Petunias.“<br/>Marvin had to laugh.<br/>„For real?“ he asked, not really convinced that his own mother, who was now a nurse, used to drink so much to threw up while attempting to talk to a guy.<br/>„Yes. Your father felt bad for me, and since he was designated driver for the night, he decided to drive me home and gave me his telephone number to call him the next morning to make sure I’m still okay.<br/>Well, now we’re married and have two wonderful sons, so I guess it’s not always the first impression that matters.“<br/>„Whizzer barfed on his shirt the first time we met,“ Marvin chuckled, „But if you tell him that I told you that he will never forgive me, so shh.“</p>
<p>The coffee machine made some noise, signaling that the coffee was now ready to serve.<br/>„Do you think I would sabotage your relationship, especially if your boyfriend is willing to play chess with your little brother at 10 o’clock in the morning?“ Beth Philipps huffed.<br/>„That’s fair.“<br/>Marvin raised himself from the table and poured a cup of the hot beverage his boyfriend somehow needed to function properly. Then, he leaned onto the counter, gazing around the corner to throw a quick look into the living room, where he found Whizzer sitting opposite Jason, staring down at the chessboard with what appeared to be immense concentration.<br/>Marvin’s assumption that Whizzer stole his hoodie got proven right, by the way.</p>
<p>„Mom, I know you taught me to be humble and never brag or shout,“ the tousled-haired boy mumbled, still staring at his boyfriend, who didn’t notice him yet, „But can you actually believe that this man over there is actually <em>my</em> boyfriend? Because I really can’t.“<br/>Beth just smiled and poured herself another cup of tea.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>When did I turn from 'angsty fics that make you cry' to 'wholesome content for comfort in every life situation'? Anyway, I embraced my fate as your provider of fluff.<br/>Stay safe y'all! :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0046"><h2>46. You’d think it’s great that your little brother gets along with your boyfriend</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Jason and Whizzer hit it off.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Today's episode of <em>Lixel can't find chapter titles for the sake of their life</em><br/>I hope you enjoy this piece of (who would have guessed) teethrotting fluff</p>
<p>Stay safe, y'all! xo</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„Good Morning,“ Marvin greeted both his brother and his boyfriend when he entered the living room, „Whiz, I got some coffee for you.“<br/>He placed the mug down next to the chessboard, right by two black chessmen that were already out.<br/>(For comparison purposes, about eight white chessmen were sitting on the other side, nine after Jason’s next move.)<br/>„You’re a saint, a gift of God, the best thing that ever happened to me,“ the photography major mumbled, grabbed the mug and downed about half of the hot liquid inside, „Your brother pleaded me to play chess with him before I got around to ask your mother how the machine worked.“</p>
<p>Marvin’s stomach tingled when Whizzer called him <em>the best thing that ever happened to him</em>, even though it was only because he brought him coffee. He prayed he wouldn't blush too much.</p>
<p>„It’s rather explaining basics than actually playing,“ Jason sighed, „He already got better though! Our first game took less than two minutes, I checkmated him with my second move.“<br/>„Whiz, didn’t I warn you about fool’s mate?“ Marvin raised his eyebrows.<br/>„It’s so cute you actually think I listened to you when you tried to explain chess to me,“ Whizzer deadpanned and affectionately patted Marvin’s knee. His hand remained on his leg afterward.<br/>„Well, I listened to you when you tried to show me how to edit a selfie so it doesn’t look edited.“<br/>„You can say that easily when you have no evidence since you don’t have <em>any</em> selfies to edit.“</p>
<p>„Checkmate,“ Jason interrupted them, grinning widely. With satisfaction, the older brother noticed that Jason would definitely need braces in a few years. Marvin had braces for a little more than three years and he hated it.</p>
<p>„You know buddy, chess really isn’t my game,“ the tall Brunette admitted, „I’m much better at sports.“<br/>„Chess is a sport!“ both Jason and Marvin blurted out almost simultaneously.<br/>„Oh my <em>God</em>,“ Whizzer sighed, shaking his head, „I mean <em>physical</em> sports, obviously.<br/>The tween’s eyes started to glow.<br/>„Oh, Whizzer, can you teach me how to get better at baseball then?“<br/>„Sure.“<br/>„Now?“ the kid had excitement in his voice.<br/>„It’s December!“ Marvin reminded the boy, „Plus you’re still wearing your Pajamas.“</p>
<p>„Now’s a great time to say it,“ Whizzer whispered, leaning forward to Jason.<br/>„Marvin, you are so <em>not fun</em>,“ the eleven-year-old said in the same dramatic manner as the photography major did so often. Then he left to go upstairs and, how Marvin assumed, get dressed.<br/>„I can’t believe you taught him that!“ Marvin rubbed a hand over his face, „You’d think it’s great that your little brother gets along with your boyfriend, but it turns out it’s not.“<br/>„I don’t know what you expected,“ the younger man laughed, raising both his hands in defense. Marvin immediately missed his touch.</p>
<p>„Well, <em>not that</em>,“ he mumbled and looked up to his boyfriend, „Anyway, good morning Baby.“<br/>Then, he leaned upwards to press a chaste kiss onto the taller man’s lips.<br/>„Good Morning, my gift of God, you look cute when you blush.“<br/>„You come into my house, you steal my hoodie, you call me sweet names, you quote one of my favorite musicals to make me flustered, <em>the audacity</em>-,“ but he didn’t bother to finish his sentence, instead he just leaned upwards again to lock their lips for the second time.</p>
<p>„I just think I look really good in that jacket, what can I say,“ Whizzer grinned after they parted again, mainly initiated by Marvin who could kiss his boyfriend for six hours straight but wasn’t really keen on having a family member barge in.<br/>„You just like taking my stuff because you think that’s how you can annoy me most easily,“ Marvin shook his head before he let his hand glide down from the taller man’s neck to the hem of the red clothing item.<br/>Glancing down at the fabric between his fingers, he tried to remember the last time he got to wear this hoodie himself. It must have been at least three weeks ago.<br/>„Wait, you mean it’s not working?“ the photography major raised his brows in disbelief.<br/>Marvin huffed before he continued talking in a low voice, „Uhm, last time you slept at my place, I had an attractive man in my kitchen, wearing nothing but my jacket and boxers, making breakfast. I am living the gay dream.“</p>
<p>„It’s so sweet how you still call it <em>your</em> jacket,“ the other man chuckled, „I just assumed by claiming to be my boyfriend you just agreed to turn your wardrobe into our wardrobe. Not that I’d ever wear your stuff in public, though.“<br/>„You did wear my gray sweatshirt a few times after you stole it from me. Remember, when I was literally a stranger to you and you still just went through my stuff?“<br/>„Okay, but <em>that</em> was really just to piss you off. You seemed like a dick, to be honest.“<br/>„Oh well, thanks, Baby,“</p>
<p>Marvin looked around in the living room, one hand still on the hem of his (their) hoodie, the other one placed on Whizzer’s knee.<br/>„Man, but you gotta admit, you really suck at chess,“ he sighed, nodding towards the chessboard that sat on the table, abandoned and waiting for its owner to return and bring it back upstairs. Their parents had gotten it as a gift for Jason, they really seemed to run out of ideas.<br/>Marvin had gotten some money to save, ‘Or spend on show tickets’ as his father had said. As he said, they seemed to run out of ideas.</p>
<p>„You didn’t mind me sucking yesterday,“ Whizzer whispered into his ear, sending a pleasant shiver down Marvin’s spine.<br/>„Could you please not try to turn me on right now?“ the older boy asked quietly with a dry mouth, „We’re literally in my parents’ living room.“</p>
<p>Just when Whizzer opened his mouth again, Mr. Philipps voice sounded through the house.<br/>„Jason, come downstairs, we’re having breakfast,“ he shouted from the foot of the stairs, then he peeked into the living room, „You two coming?“</p>
<p>Marvin thought about how it felt awkward to be caught by his father in this kind of intimate moment with Whizzer. Still leaned towards each other, not more than 20 centimeters between them, his hand on his boyfriend’s knee. Nothing scandalous, and now that Marvin knew that his parents were not homophobic in any way, he was pretty sure that even if his father barged into them fully making out, he would just make some kind of weird dad-joke and leave again.<br/>Still, he hoped it never came to that situation.</p>
<p>„Coming,“ the theater nerd nodded, he felt a slight blush creeping up his face.<br/>„Hey, another parallel to yesterday night!“ Whizzer teased him again, barely loud enough to hear.<br/>„Oh my God, Andrew, <em>behave</em>,“ Marvin mumbled, using Whizzer’s full name just to spite him, before getting up from the sofa and striding towards the kitchen, dragging his boyfriend along by his hand.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0047"><h2>47. I’m almost glad that I moved out already</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Breakfast at Marvin's (and Jason's and Beth's and Robert's)</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„Whizzer promised to play Baseball with me!“ Jason proudly exclaimed at the breakfast table.<br/>„That’s nice of him! Did you say thank you?“ Mrs. Philipps asked, stirring in her mug and looking up to his youngest son.<br/>„No, because Marvin sent me upstairs to get dressed,“ the kid replied before turning his head to now address Whizzer directly, „Thank you, Whizzer! I’m glad that my brother, who’s bad at every sport except for chess, now has a boyfriend who can help me to get better at baseball!“<br/>„Brat,“ Marvin mumbled into his bagel, „I get now what Cordelia meant when she said that her family likes Charlotte better than her.“</p>
<p>„I’m sure there’s at least one sport Marvin is not completely bad at,“ Whizzer tried to defuse, „I took him to Racquetball practice some time ago and he was not a complete disaster.“<br/>„That’s the support I was hoping for, Whiz’,“ the irony in Marvin’s words was clearly noticeable.<br/>„You got Marvin to play Racquetball with you?“ Mr. Philipps asked, his lips pulled to an amused grin, „And he did it voluntarily?“</p>
<p>„Oh my God if I knew that introducing my boyfriend would mean that everyone in the house roasts me constantly, I wouldn’t have invited him,“ Marvin groaned.<br/>Whizzer, who sat right next to him, affectionately patted the theater nerd’s leg with his hand.<br/>„Yes I did, actually. Believe me, I was just as surprised when I asked him and he actually agreed!“</p>
<p>Both parents exchanged a short glance before Beth started talking again, this time directed towards her oldest son, „Honey, it’s just that you were never really interested in most sports. So we’re just happy to hear that you tried our something new.“<br/>„Well, I <em>did</em> tap-dancing in middle school,“ Marvin corrected his mother, „That counts as some kind of sporting activity.“</p>
<p>„You did?“ the photography major asked amused, „Wait, no, I’m not even surprised.“<br/>„Ha ha, very funny.“<br/>„You just didn’t want to go there all of a sudden, so we assumed that maybe it just wasn’t your thing,“ Robert, Whizzer was allowed to call him Rob, vaguely memorized.<br/>Marvin shrugged.<br/>„The other kids at school started to call me gay for it, so I didn’t want to go there anymore.“</p>
<p>The atmosphere turned dark immediately. Well, for everyone present, except for the tween.<br/>„But Marvin,“ he asked slowly, „You are. Aren’t you?“</p>
<p>Gently, Whizzer rubbed his thumb across his lover’s tight, trying to calm him, since he did seem a little tense, thanks to the difficult topic.<br/>„Yeah, but that was not so easy to accept,“ Marvin eventually brought out after only a few seconds, together with another shrug, „Uh, the scrambled eggs are great today, Mom.“</p>
<p>Fortunately, Beth Philipps got the broad hint and eagerly changed the topic.<br/>„So, what’s everyone’s plan for tonight?“ she asked instead.<br/>„I need somebody to drive me to Josh’s house,“ Jason mentioned, „Around 7pm.“<br/>„How about you ask your beloved brother?“ Rob proposed, glancing over to his other son.<br/>„Daaad,“ said son whined, „I have a guest over!“<br/>„We still need to prepare one or two things before Lisa and Brian come over,“ the only woman at the table agreed to her husband’s idea, „It’d be really convenient, Honey. You could drive past your old high school and show it to Whizzer!“</p>
<p>„Fine, I guess,“ the theater nerd mumbled, „By the way, we’ll walk over to Trina’s around 9pm or so, depending on how long Whizzer needs to dress up.“<br/>„You mean how long I’ll need to find a decent outfit for you to wear? Because that’s gonna be some piece of hard work.“<br/>„Shush.“</p>
<p>Marvin gently nudged his boyfriend with his elbow.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>After finishing breakfast and establishing that it was Marvin’s turn to clean the dishes („But I have Whizzer over!“ - „See, if you do it together you’ll be finished in a heartbeat!“) Jason quickly left to run upstairs.<br/>While Robert Philipps went upstairs as well, to start with the cleaning on the upper floor, Beth helped the two college students clearing the table.<br/>„Hey, just asking, did Jason tell you about this girl, Heather Levin, from school?“ she suddenly asked, addressing rather Marvin than Whizzer.<br/>The older boy huffed.<br/>„He told Trina and I just happened to be in the room, honestly.“<br/>„I think he just wanted to prove you wrong,“ Whizzer added, putting Jason’s cereal bowl into the sink.</p>
<p>„That sounds about right,“ Marvin mumbled, „He asked us all not to tell you and Dad, did he tell you himself, eventually?“<br/>Bet shook her head.<br/>„Nah, I’ve met Heather’s Mom at the supermarket two weeks ago and she told me about it. Your Dad and I got a bet going if and when he’s gonna tell us. So don’t tell him we know.“</p>
<p>After an understanding humming sound by the oldest son, the three of them fell silent for a few minutes. Nothing but the chinking of plates and other dishware, and the splashing of the water in the sink were audible.<br/>Then, „<em>Marvin</em>,“ a high voice sounded from upstairs.<br/>Letting out a groan, Marvin put the stack of plates into the kitchen cupboard.<br/>„Look, I really love him, he’s my brother, he’s family, all that stuff,“ he murmured, „But I’ve been home for two weeks and I’m almost glad that I moved out already.“<br/>„I hear that,“ Whizzer nodded, thinking back to the last few days together with his sisters, even though that might not be the same as Marvin’s situation, due to the age difference between the theater nerd and his little brother. „I can finish doing the dishes and come upstairs then,“ he then proposed.</p>
<p>Marvin shook his head, „No, Whizzer, you’re our guest, I can’t-“<br/>„<em>Marvin!!! Can you help me with something?</em>“<br/>„Go!“ the photography major insisted, a light smile on his face.<br/>„Thanks, Whiz,“ the shorter man stepped closer, probably to press Whizzer a chaste (or maybe not so chaste) kiss onto his lips, but then he seemed to remember that his mother was still present. Facing away from them, yet present.</p>
<p>Eventually, Marvin decided for a peck on Whizzer’s cheek, before turning around again.<br/>„Wouldn’t be the first time I’d do your dishes for you,“ the tall Brunette called after him.<br/>„That was <em>one time</em> and it was only because I had to finish writing some assignment I had to hand in like two hours later,“ the theater nerd called back, already on his way to the stairs.</p>
<p>Whizzer cracked a smile and then turned around to wash out his coffee mug.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I am running out of chapters and I mean i have everything planned out but still haven't written the final chapters sdkjhdsfg somebody send me some motivation please,,</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0048"><h2>48. She's really cool</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„So,“ Beth started after a few moments, „Marvin said your real name was Andrew? Which one would you rather have us call you, Andrew or Whizzer?“<br/>„Whizzer is just fine,“ he gave back, looking over his shoulder, „Nobody calls me Andrew, except for some stubborn professors at college and some distant relatives. My Mom does it sometimes, and my sisters try to annoy me with it.“<br/><em>Same goes for Marvin</em> he added mentally.<br/>„Whizzer it is,“ Mrs. Philipps nodded with a smile, „How did you get the name, though? Sounds pretty unusual to me.“</p>
<p>„My teachers liked to call me a <em>rather active child</em>,“ he chuckled, „I have ADHD, so teaching me in primary school must have been very fun.“<br/>„Oh, my younger brother has ADHD, from time to time he would drive our parents <em>nuts</em>.“<br/>„Yeah, my Dad wasn’t the best at handling me when I was younger. My mother handled it pretty well. She was the one to come up with the name eventually,“ Whizzer hesitated for a few seconds until he proceeded to talk, „He is gonna hate me for asking that, but how was Marvin when he was younger?“</p>
<p>Whizzer took the towel to dry the bowl he just cleaned and Beth started to smile.<br/>„He could be very quiet and withdrawn into himself. As soon as he was old enough to understand sarcasm, he used it in every other sentence,“ she paused for a second, „Around 14, he had some anger issues. I don’t want to go into detail, so you can ask him yourself if you want to.“<br/>„He briefly told me about it,“ Whizzer nodded, thinking about one night they both rambled on about childhood and youth memories.</p>
<p>„Oh, and that’s probably not a big surprise now, but since we went to see a show on Broadway when he was 8, he’s been obsessed with musical theater!“ Beth continued, „He liked to refer to it as <em>the night that changed his life</em>.“<br/>„Before we started dating, I thought that Musicals and Sarcasm were his only personality traits,“ Whizzer admitted and put the last plates into the kitchen cupboard, „But he’s never really been in a show right? Besides tech, I mean.“<br/>The nurse shook her head.<br/>„No, at least none that we knew of. I think it was because he was scared.“<br/>„Of what? Singing in front of people?“<br/>„Having people calling him gay because of it.“</p>
<p>That made sense, it really did, Whizzer thought.</p>
<p>„Huh...“ he sat down on the table, Beth sat down right opposite, „That might be it.“<br/>„He really wanted to do tap dancing in Middle School, and he really seemed to enjoy it. Yet, he stopped when people questioned his sexuality because of it. I think he was afraid the same thing would happen if he’d try out for a role.“</p>
<p>Suddenly, Whizzer felt immensely bad for his boyfriend, or rather his boyfriend’s younger version of himself.<br/>„You don’t need to answer that if you’re not comfortable with it, but do you mind if I ask how you came out to your family?“ Mrs. Philipps asked.<br/>Whizzer didn’t hesitate before answering her question.</p>
<p>„Not quite sure,“ he laughed slightly, „I think when I was around 11 or so and my aunt asked me if I had any girls I like, I just told her about some boy in my class. She didn’t really expect that answer, but nobody was bothered about it. So, I guess I didn’t really need to <em>officially come out</em>.“<br/>Beth listened to his story, slowly nodding.<br/>„Marvin probably told you, but he came out to us by revealing that you were more than just his friend,“ she said, „Given that we thought he had been dating Trina for several years, we were taken off-guard for a second.“<br/>She laughed a bit, then, „But obviously we’re just glad that everybody is happy with how things are now. Marv told us about a certain <em>Mendel</em> that Trina is seeing, do you know anything about him?<br/>Sorry for asking so bluntly, it’s just, Trina is like a daughter to me and I’d like to know her in good hands.“</p>
<p>„Mendel is one of my closest friends and a very good guy,“ Whizzer ensured the woman, „He’s an honest soul, a real gentleman and he cherishes Trina with every fiber of his being. Really, sometimes it’s a bit annoying.“<br/>„That’s good to hear,“ Beth nodded, „Trina is like family to us, so it’s good to hear that she’s doing well. Oh, and Marvin told us about a girl Charlotte is dating, how about her?“<br/>„Oh, Cordelia is the best!“ Whizzer grinned, „She’s my best friend, too, and she is the sweetest person on earth. She loves to cook, which doesn’t mean that she always <em>succeeds</em>, but she’s always very proud of it. And well, she and Charles really are the reason why Marvin and I started dating, so I’m also grateful for that.<br/>But don’t tell Marvin I said that, it’ll go to is head.“</p>
<p>The nurse let out a laugh, „I’m pretty sure he already knows and probably thinks the same way. So basically, you were two groups with three people each, and one by one you started dating people from the other group? That’s a nice coincidence.“<br/>Whizzer tried not to chuckle about how she didn’t even know that he and Marvin already met at the night club before all that.<br/>„Yeah, guess it is. But well, Delia and Charles literally forced us all to hang out together, because they wanted to matchmake Trina and Mendel.“</p>
<p>„If I may say so, I’m glad they did,“ Mrs. Philipps smiled, „I think you make Marvin very happy. We all know and love him, being grumpy and sarcastic most of the time, but now he just has some kind of ease. And I see how he behaves when you’re around, it brings me a lot of joy to see my son this happy again.“</p>
<p>Whizzer felt his cheeks blush slightly as he got up from his chair.<br/>„I think I know what you mean. Not gonna lie, he was not the nicest person when we first met. He wasn’t awful, he just wasn’t the most pleasant human being to be around most of the time.<br/>Well, it got better after some time, obviously.“</p>
<p>„Whizz’?,“ Marvin’s voice sounded from the second floor, „Are you still downstairs in the kitchen?“<br/>„Uh, yeah! One second, I’ll come upstairs in a minute.“</p>
<p>He smiled at Beth one last time.<br/>„Good talk,“ he then said.<br/>„Oh, totally. Let’s totally do that again some time, I hope you’ll visit a few more times.“</p>
<p>He gave her a little wave as he left the kitchen to join Marvin in his room.</p>
<p>In his room, Marvin laid spread out in his bed, glancing at Whizzer when he entered the room.<br/>„What did you do in the kitchen for so long?“ he asked, not in a controlling kind of way but more in a genuinely curious one.<br/>„Your Mom and I got into talking. She’s really cool,“ Whizzer shrugged and closed the door behind him.<br/>„Oh my God you talked about all the embarrassing details from my childhood, didn’t you?“ the theater nerd groaned, „Remind me to never leave you alone with her anymore.“<br/>„I definitely won’t do that,“ the younger one chuckled and walked over to the bed, „What did Jason want?“<br/>„The kid had some struggles with his computer and needed my help to fix it, nothing major really. He asked me if I could bring you over some time next year so you two can play Baseball.“<br/>„I’d like that,“ he smiled and sat down on the bed next to Marvin, who immediately sat up, „What?“</p>
<p>The older boy looked up and down Whizzer’s face and upper body and started to grin.<br/>„Well, I was hoping for some cuddles after waking up, but then I found myself in a bed without my hot boyfriend, so I thought you’d be down to make up for that now.“<br/>„You know Marv, you don’t need to look for reasons to make out with me, you can just ask nicely,“ Whizzer teased him before lowering himself down onto the mattress, and dragging his boyfriend down by the fabric of his shirt.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I would have uploaded that yesterday buuut i was too busy, so sorry for that, dkfjghkdfg<br/>Hope you enjoyed it!!!<br/>I mentioned earlier that I start to run out of chapters, which is kinda ironic tbh, since I managed to keep a steady upload-rhythm the entire time, and now that I'm almost done, writer's blocks just start hitting hard.<br/>So in case, y'all wanna send me some motivation or so, feel free to hit me up on my Instagram @hometownforest or Tiktok @xlixel (Yes I have TikTok but if anyone ever asked me about it, I would deny the shit outta it)</p>
<p>Read y'all (hopefully) soon!!! xoxo<br/>~Lixel</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0049"><h2>49. He’s still my brother</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Caffeine withdrawal, part one</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Who's hyped for Hamilton???<br/>I am. That's it, that's all i have to say.</p>
<p>Enjoy this chapter!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They decided to skip lunch that day. Later at Trina’s house, they’d stuff themselves with homemade pizza anyway. The day was spend with Jason begging to play some more chess with Whizzer, but the kid lost interest after another two rounds, which both didn’t last much longer than ten minutes.<br/>
It then took Marvin another 30 minutes to convince the youngest boy that it was definitely too cold outside to play baseball with his brother’s boyfriend. Eventually, it was Mr. Philipps who managed to distract Jason, simply by asking him to clean up his room.<br/>
„Why should I tidy my room? I don’t think Lisa and Brian will care,“ he argued, crossing his arms.<br/>
Still, he stomped out of Marvin’s room, leaving the theater nerd and his boyfriend alone again.</p>
<p>After complaining that he awoke pretty early in the morning, Whizzer first started yawning around 3pm. Marvin was not surprised by that, he expected Whizzer to nod off at some point throughout the afternoon. He was proven to be right when, around 5pm, the Brunette had his face buried in Marvin’s shoulder, snoring quietly.<br/>
Of course, he’d fall asleep while Marvin read Shakespeare to him. Shortly before he had made fun of the theater nerd, for not throwing out the books after having to read them for school.<br/>
„I actually like to read them from time to time,“ Marvin had admitted, „Does that actually surprise you?“<br/>
„Not really,“ Whizzer had just mumbled, „I always thought they were boring. Does that actually surprise you?“<br/>
„Not the slightest,“ the older one huffed, „There goes my dream of reciting Shakespeare with my boyfriend.“<br/>
„You poor boy,“ the photography major teased and pulled out a random book, „I don’t know that one, you can read it to me if that’s what makes you happy.“<br/>
„Not exactly what I meant,“ Marvin chuckled, „You just want me to talk you to sleep so you can take a nap.“<br/>
„Noooo, I promise I’ll stay awake!“</p>
<p>That was a straight-up lie and both of them knew that. Still, they settled down on the bed, Marvin’s arm swung around his boyfriend, his hands buried in the Brunettes hair.<br/>
Whizzer lasted less than 20 minutes. Longer than Marvin had expected, to be fair.<br/>
Since then, they’d just lay there together. Marvin put the book aside, pulling out his phone to check if there were any new texts in their group chat, concerning their plans for tonight.</p>
<p>He texted with Trina for a bit. Mendel arrived at hers around noon, and they spend the whole day with setting up the usually unused guest room for Cordelia and Charlotte.<br/>
Trina visited her parents about every other Sunday, and since she just dragged Mendel along some time, he didn’t have to be introduced to them anymore. Not surprisingly, Lisa and Brian practically adopted Mendel rather quickly.<br/>
The biology major really wasn’t surprised when Marvin mentioned that his parents accepted Whizzer in a heartbeat. It made Marvin feel silly again, for actually having worried about his family’s reaction.</p>
<p>Marvin’s arm has been numb for a bit more than one hour when somebody knocked at the ajar door. He had insisted on not closing the door fully after Jason left again. He felt like it might give his parents wrong assumptions since he and Whizzer didn’t really leave the room for the whole day.<br/>
„Yeah?“ Marvin asked in a muted voice, his hands were still gently stroking through Whizzer’s hair.<br/>
„Can I come in?“ the youngest member of the household asked from outside the room.</p>
<p>Sometimes, Marvin was irritated by the fact that his brother always asked for permission to enter the room.<br/>
„Yeah, but Whizzer is asleep,“ he gave back whispering. He actually hated whispering, it’s bad for the vocal chords.<br/>
„Can you drive me to Josh’s house soon?“ the kid asked, entering the room. Only then he saw Whizzer snuggled against Marvin’s shoulder, the older one’s arm swung around him.  „Ew,“ he mumbled with furrowed brows, „Get a room.“<br/>
„We’re literally in <em>my</em> bedroom,“ the college student somehow tried to sit up, trying not to let Whizzer’s head fall onto the mattress, „Didn’t you say that we need to leave around 7pm?“<br/>
„I have to be <em>there</em> at 7pm. So we should leave in about ten minutes.“<br/>
Jason crossed his arms.</p>
<p>„The cool kids are never on time,“ Whizzer mumbled against Marvin’s chest.<br/>
„But what if they start playing Mario Kart without me, huh?“ the kid gave back, „Can we go, now that Whizzer is awake?“<br/>
„Yeah, go downstairs and put your shoes on,“ Marvin sighed, „We’ll be there in a minute.“</p>
<p>While Jason stormed out of the room again, Whizzer snuggled closer and let out a groan.<br/>
„He’s not even sorry that he woke me up? He really is a brat.“<br/>
„Hey, he’s still my brother!“ Marvin pretended to be offended while Whizzer turned his head and dragged his hand through his hair.<br/>
„You say that all the time!“<br/>
„Yeah, but I can do that because he is my brother. Don’t act like you wouldn’t get mad at everyone who says mean things about your sisters.“<br/>
The taller boy huffed, „Feel free to talk any shit about Laura or Cassie.“<br/>
„I won’t, because I am polite. And slightly intimidated by Laura.“<br/>
„Oh my God don’t be, she’s almost two years younger than you are.“</p>
<p><em>„Marvin!!!“</em><br/>
The voice of his beloved little brother sounded through the house.<br/>
„You can stay here if you want to,“ the theater nerd looked at his boyfriend, who eventually sat up and started to rub his eyes (how again did he somehow still manage to look incredibly attractive while doing that?), „I can just drive him to his friend’s house alone and you can stay here and sleep or get ready or whatever you wanna do, honestly.“</p>
<p>But Whizzer shook his head.<br/>
„Nah. As your Mom said, you can drive past your old high school and show me where you spend the four most angsty years of your life!“<br/>
„Or we could just drop Jason at his friend’s house and come back here and make out for another hour or so until you’ll start to get ready.“<br/>
„Yes let’s do that instead, that sounds fun.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„Jason, what on earth makes you even <em>think</em> that you can ride shotgun instead of Whizzer?“<br/>
„Because I’m your brother, and blood is thicker than water.“<br/>
„Well, I’m his boyfriend and that gives me the all-time privilege to ride shotgun in Marvin’s car.“<br/>
After the sitting arrangements were clarified, the short drive could begin.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>You bet that Marvin explained the actual meaning of "blood is thicker than water" throughout the entire car ride.<br/>(At least that's what I do whenever that phrase is used wrongly)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0050"><h2>50. What else is she supposed to show the other women at work</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>It's called fashion and, as always, Marvin has no clue how it works</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„Good Job Whizzer, the last time that Marvin has looked that stylish was his prom!“ Beth had nodded appreciatively when the boys came downstairs at 8.45.<br/>
He did spend the last hour to convince his boyfriend to put one the black button-up he had found in the closet, combined with a brick-red colored bow tie. After a lot of whining, complaints, and reassuring kisses he eventually gave in.<br/>
Whizzer himself, on the other hand, just went with his pink shirt and black pants.<br/>
He also did touch up his hair, which had been a complete mess after his nap and the make-out session after they dropped off Jason at his friend’s house. Marvin’s hair, however, was as curly and tousled as always, and there was not one single way to ever possibly change it.<br/>
(But if he was being honest with himself, Whizzer didn’t even really want to do that. He always thought that Marvin’s hair looked cute. He just never dared to say it out loud.)</p><p>„Did you also spend so much time just <em>convincing</em> him?“ the tall Brunette asked his boyfriend’s mother.<br/>
„A bit, but he knew that there wasn’t really a way around it,“ Mrs. Philipps nodded and pulled out her phone, „But don’t you two look adorable together? Do you mind if I take a quick picture before you leave?“</p><p>„Mooom,“ Marvin whined, „It’s not prom, it’s just me and Whizzer going to a small party at our friend’s house.“<br/>
„What else is she supposed to show to the other women at work then, when they are talking about their children again?“ Mr. Philipps added, sticking his head out of the kitchen.<br/>
„If you want to take a picture, I’d suggest not to do it here though, the lighting isn’t really optimal, I think it should be more aesthetically pleasing in the living room,“ the photography major proposed, earning a glare from his boyfriend.</p><p>Photos were taken, much to Marvin’s irritation. Especially because Whizzer insisted on taking multiple photos in different poses. Beth, however, seemed to just love that she now finally got to have some more pictures of her oldest son and his boyfriend.<br/>
That included the cliche-shot of Whizzer pressing his lips against Marvin’s cheek. It was one of the few pictures of them in which Marvin didn’t pull an annoyed face, instead, his lips were curled into a laugh, while his hands on Whizzer’s chest halfheartedly tried to push him away.<br/>
Of course, Whizzer just had to give Beth his phone number so she could send him everything.<br/>
(He didn’t quite trust Marvin to forward all the photos if Beth sent them to just him.)</p><p>„We’re gonna be late,“ the older boy noted at some point, „We should get going.“<br/>
„I’ll tell you the same thing I told your brother earlier, the cool kids are never on time,“ the photography major reminded him.<br/>
„The other’s are already there, it’s so impolite to let them wait.“<br/>
„Delia and Mend are already used to me being late, they’ve been my friends for some years now. If we’re on time, they’re just gonna be confused.“<br/>
„Oh my God I can’t believe I actually like you, we’re literal opposites.“</p><p>They eventually got to leave the house around 9.15, only shortly after Trina’s parent’s arrived.<br/>
Marvin put on his ridiculously big jacket again, much to Whizzer’s amusement.<br/>
„We’re gonna be walking outside in the cold for ten minutes, and all <em>you</em> got is your leather jacket,“ he huffed, tying his shoes and glancing up at Whizzer who just now put on the said jacket.</p><p>„You say that as if you don’t enjoy me clinging onto you for warmth.“<br/>
„I’m not denying that I’m just saying that a leather jacket in December is utterly impractical.“<br/>
„But it looks good.“<br/>
Marvin rolled his eyes.<br/>
„We’re leaving now,“ he then shouted, informing his parents and their guests, „See you next year.“<br/>
„Oh my God you really are one of these people,“ Whizzer snorted.<br/>
„What, the one that tells their parents when they’re leaving?“ Marvin asked with a frown and moved towards the door.<br/>
„The one to say things like ‘see you next year’ on New Year’s Eve.“<br/>
„So that really surprises you now?“ he raised his eyebrows unimpressed and put his hand on the door handle, „You got everything you need? And don’t you dare to now take my hand and say bullshit like ‘I do now’ or so.“<br/>
„So you get to be cute and take my hand at the airport but I can’t say nice things in the safety of your house?“ Whizzer chuckled and double-checked his hair in the mirror right next to the door.<br/>
„You got it,“ the older boy awkwardly grinned and made finger guns, to which Whizzer couldn’t respond with anything other than laughter.<br/>
Then, he leaned forward to press a kiss onto Marvin’s forehead.<br/>
„Let’s go, Marv, or do you want to let the other’s wait?“</p><p> </p><p>When they approached the door to Trina’s house, they could already hear muffled music playing inside. Whizzer could recognize it as either Mendel’s or Trina’s playlist (they both had a rather similar taste in music), and the closer the came to the door, the louder Cordelia’s singing was audible. She surely didn’t know any of the lyrics, but Delia was always really easy to excite.<br/>
It took them three times knocking until they could finally hear something inside the house move. Eventually, the door was answered by Mendel and Cordelia, Mendel who gave Cordelia (who was still mumbling along to unknown lyrics, of course) a piggyback ride, to be precise.<br/>
„Hey boys!!!“ the Blonde exclaimed joyfully and jumped down from his friend’s back to greet both Whizzer and Marvin in an embrace.<br/>
„Let the boys come in first, Deli,“ the house owner laughed, now appearing behind Mendel along with Charlotte.<br/>
„Did you already pre-game without me?“ Whizzer asked offended when they got inside and took their jackets off.<br/>
„Not really, she just exaggerated on the sparkling wine,“ Charlotte explained her girlfriend’s cheerfulness and looked at her wristwatch, „Marv, I am surprised that Whizzer made you come late rather than you made him come early.“<br/>
„Excuse me, I’d never come early,“ Whizzer huffed.<br/>
„Not even 10pm and there we already go with the sex jokes,“ Mendel noted.</p><p>„I really tried to leave on time but my Mom insisted on having a full photo-shoot, and Whizzer kept stressing that <em>the cool kids are never on time</em>,“ Marvin ensured the medical student, hanging his enormous coat onto the coat-hook.<br/>
„What can I say, I just did such an amazing job at picking your wardrobe today, no wonder your mother wanted to save that look for eternity,“ the photography major explained humbly, „Trin, where is the sparkling wine that was mentioned?“<br/>
„In the kitchen,“ Trina gave back, „You can drink some while we prepare the pizza, we were just waiting for you two and honestly, I’m kinda starving already.“<br/>
„Food will help to soak up the alcohol in Cordelia’s system, too,“ Marvin added as the group made their way to the kitchen.<br/>
„Bold of you to assume that I won’t just keep drinking more, now that Whizzer is here, too,“ Delia countered.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0051"><h2>51. Marv brought me coffee</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Caffeine withdrawal, part two</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„I completely blocked out that making pizza together would remind me that the man I am dating eats his pizza with pineapple,“ Whizzer eyed the canned pineapple in Marvin’s hand with suspicion, „I swear to God Baby if one of those bastards lands on my side of the pizza I’m gonna print out pictures of you sleeping and hang them up all over campus.“<br/>„Hey guys, imagine being <em>that</em> petty over a sweet, delicious fruit on a dough and tomato sauce,“ Marvin commented, shoveling the yellow pieces onto his side of the pizza.<br/>„Pineapple does not belong on pizza, you need to face it, Sweety.“<br/>„The only thing that I’m gonna face is that my boyfriend is unnecessarily mean about other people’s eating habits.“</p>
<p>„Is it just me or are you guys also wondering whether they are actually fighting all day long or just bantering all the time when we’re around?“ Charles asked, looking around at her friends.<br/>„Whizzer just likes to annoy the shit out of people,“ Cordelia took into consideration while spreading canned corn on her half and then passing the can on to Trina.<br/>„And Marvin is a sarcastic shit, so he always has the last word,“ the biology major added.<br/>„We’re literally right here, guys,“ Marvin remembered his friends, „And for the record, we don’t fight all the time. Today, Whizzer slept on my arm for two hours, it went totally numb, and I did not complain once about it.“<br/>„Isn’t that human decency?“ Whizzer snorted and tore open a package of shredded cheese, „I’m just saying, letting your boyfriend sleep on your arm when he’s having a headache is kinda what you sign up for when you decide for the relationship.“<br/>„Do you need painkillers? I can get you some from upstairs if you want them,“ Trina proposed.<br/>„Nah, I’m fine, it’s just a very subtle pain in the back of my head, nothing really bad, just a little annoying,“ the photography major shrugged.<br/>„Oh, you do drink coffee every morning, right?“ Charlotte now asked, throwing away the now-empty package which contained the pepperoni, „It might be caffeine withdrawal, in case you didn’t have coffee this morning.“<br/>„No, Marv brought me coffee while I was busy getting beaten at chess by Jason.“<br/>„Hey, that would be another example of what a great boyfriend I am!“ Marvin said quickly and took the package of shredded cheese out of Whizzer’s hands.</p>
<p>„Oh, guys!“ Trina announced after the pizzas were put into the oven, „Whiz, Delia, and I looked up some cocktail recipes that we decided to try out tonight, so we’re gonna be your bartenders for the night!“<br/>„Amazing,“ Marvin deadpanned, „Great idea. Everything we ever asked for.“<br/>„Don’t worry guys, I got this,“ Whizzer nodded and put his arm around Marvin’s shoulder, „His first drink is gonna be like 80% vodka, I am kind of curious what drunk Marvi is gonna be like.“<br/>„Listen, I know my parents love you already but that might change if you give me alcohol poisoning.“<br/>„Again with the bickering!“ Charles shook her head in either disbelief or amusement, or probably just both.</p>
<p>„You now may order your favored cocktails and alcoholic beverages and we will mix and serve them to you,“ Cordelia spoke in an orotund way, even making a little bow at the end of her sentence. The bow led to her losing her balance and tumbling right into her girlfriend’s arms.<br/>„Honey, Sweetie, Dearest, maybe you should wait until we ate dinner before you make cocktails,“ she proposed.<br/>„Ironic words for someone whose entire relationship began with a drunk make-out,“ Whizzer teased the medical student.<br/>„I’m just saying that I’d rather not have her walking around in the kitchen when the oven door is gonna be opened the next time.“<br/>„That sounds like a reasonable suggestion,“ Mendel nodded, „Hey Deli, how about you take care of the cocktails after we all had dinner?“<br/>„I don’t like that idea,“ the Blonde crossed her arms, „But fine.“</p>
<p>„Hey Whiz, can I use your phone to set a timer?“ Mendel then asked, pointing at the photography major’s phone that set on the counter somewhere, „Mine is connected to the speakers.“<br/>„Sure,“ Whizzer shrugged and took the bag of chips that Trina loaded into his arms.<br/>„Who is Beth and why did she send you like 30 pictures?“<br/>„That’s my Mom,“ Marvin groaned, „I swear, they all conspired against me at this point.“<br/>„I hear you,“ Delia nodded eagerly, „My family probably has a group chat with Charles but without me.“<br/>„We don’t,“ Charlotte ensured her tipsy girlfriend on their way into the big living room, „But your brother does send me a noteworthy number of Memes on Instagram.“<br/>„Okay but how about we’re just all grateful that our families accept and love our partners as much as we do?“ Trina placed the Bluetooth speaker in the middle of the table, „My Dad wants to go on a  fishing trip with Mendel sometime.“<br/>„And I am fucking terrified of it, thank you so much for asking,“ the psychiatry major added, „But it could be worse, I guess.“</p>
<p>„Look at all of us, being in happy relationships, having our girlfriends and boyfriends meet our parents, so grownup and mature,“ Delia smiled dreamily and swung her arms around Whizzer, who luckily just at this moment put the chips bags down on the table.<br/>„God, Deli, we became old,“ he muttered, „Remember in freshman year, when-“<br/>But he didn’t get to finish his sentence, since Deli started to squeal, loosened her embrace around him, and instead started to run towards the Maine Coon that now entered the room.</p>
<p>„Hell, she does have the attention span of a mayfly when she’s tipsy,“ Trina mumbled and shook her head, „Delia, you’ll scare the cat if you do that, he’s old and shy.“<br/>Her point got proven when the cat got startled and fled from Cordelia.<br/>„Wait, isn’t he turning eleven next summer?“ Marvin asked and sat down on the big sofa in the middle of the room.<br/>Trina nodded.</p>
<p>The cat in question jumped onto the couch and climbed onto Marvin’s lap.<br/>„Hey!“ Whizzer called out, „That’s my seat, get down there, old man!“<br/>„Sorry to tell you that now, Whizzer, but Marvin and my cat have been in love since the very first day he set a foot into my house,“ the Biology major let out a dramatic sigh.<br/>„I didn’t know you were into old guys, Marv,“ the tall Brunette raised his eyebrows and sat down next to his boyfriend, eyeing the cat cautiously.</p>
<p>Whizzer had always been more of a dog-person.</p>
<p>„I always wanted a cat when I was little, but my father is allergic, so whenever I was at Trina’s I’d spent a ridiculous amount of time with Pumpkin.“<br/>„I mean, I pretty much did the same with Jason when I was at your house,“ Trina added and walked back into the kitchen to come back with a plate of what Whizzer assumed to be leftover Christmas-candy from Delia’s family.</p>
<p>He did spend the holidays in sophomore year with them and when they flew back, the photography major was sure that they had given him at least three pounds of cookies and candy canes to take back to New York.</p>
<p>„So we’re just gonna ignore that your cat is called Pumpkin?“ Whizzer asked and took something from the plate.<br/>„Do the math and calculate how old I was when we got him.“<br/>„Whiz, your dog is named Pie,“ Mendel said with furrowed brows.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0052"><h2>52. As a family</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>What's 2020 gonna bring?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Alternative title for this chapter:<br/>How many quarantine references can Lix hide in the group's new year's resolutions?<br/>(Spot them, go ahead. I had way too much fun doing this. This is exactly my kind of humor.)</p>
<p>Support BLM, sign petitions, wear a mask, wash your hands, stay safe, and please enjoy this chapter!!! :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After dinner, Delia finally got her will and she, Trina and Whizzer prepared cocktails for everyone. That probably excited her the most, out of all of them, but nobody seriously complained.<br/>So, around 10:30, the group sat back in Trina’s living room, spread on the sofa and the armchair, everyone holding a glass with beverages that all definitely had more alcohol, than the recipe had said, in them.<br/>To pretty much everybody’s surprise, Marvin cleared his throat.<br/>„Before we drink, I would like to say a few words,“ he announced, earning some confused looks.<br/>„Sure, go ahead,“ Charles eventually shrugged and put her glass down on the living room table.</p>
<p>„Uh, so I just want to thank you guys for the last weeks and months,“ he then began, „We all know that I am not always the easiest person to hang out with, so I really appreciate that you still, well, <em>invite</em> me to stuff.<br/>And thanks, Trin and Charles, for dragging me along to the night club on Trin’s birthday, I guess. Without you being so stubborn, I probably would not be in this place here right now, so thanks for that,“ His lips curled up into a smile, „And yes, Whizzer, before you’re gonna say it: with <em>in this place</em> I also mean having you as my amazingly sweet boyfriend.“<br/>„I was gonna use the adjectives <em>hot</em> or <em>incredible</em>, but you really did your best,“ Whizzer grinned and pressed a kiss onto his lover’s cheek.</p>
<p>„Marv, that was super sweet, I’m gonna cry,“ Trina said and rubbed her hand over her eyes.<br/>„Agreed,“ Delia nodded heavily and sprung up from the armchair (and Charlotte’s lap) to hurry over and capture Marvin in a hug.<br/>„Oh my God, <em>this</em> is why I never say mushy things!“ Marvin laughed but returned the hug.<br/>„I mean, you can be really cute sometimes,“ Whizzer now mentioned.<br/>„Yeah, but you are my boyfriend, that’s different.“</p>
<p>„Maybe you could make that your New Year’s Resolution!“ Charlotte proposed.<br/>„Being nice to my boyfriend?“<br/>„Saying nice things to your friends more often than just once a year.“<br/>„That’s fair.“</p>
<p>„Hey, how about we all go around and say what we expect from the next year, and what our resolutions are?“ Trina asked, setting her glass down as well, now that this seemed to be a much longer toast than everyone had anticipated, „Who’s gonna start?“</p>
<p>„I’ll start!“ Mendel raised his hand, „I will, uhh… I will buy flowers for my girlfriend at least twice a week! And I will try not to get overwhelmed by finals again.<br/>And I think the next year is gonna bring many new memories that we can make together as a group.“<br/>„Family. As a family,“ Delia corrected him, „I will start looking for a job, so maybe that’s not gonna be the fun-part about 2020. I hope for… Many weekends that we can all just hang out together, eat take-out, watch movies, or play drinking games.<br/>And I hope that nobody gets food poisoning when I cook for you all.“</p>
<p>Three out of six people leaned forward to knock on the wooden living room table.</p>
<p>„Fair,“ the Blonde nodded, „Oh, and another goal for 2020 is to finally bake that perfect Banana Bread!“</p>
<p>„I think I want to play the oboe more. The thing has been collecting dust since 2016,“ Trina mumbled, „I get the feeling that Caroline is not gonna be happy to hear that. I mean, who even knows if I find the time, maybe I’ll be just overwhelmed with finals or whatever, really.<br/>Let’s see if 2020 gives me some time to pick up an old hobby.“</p>
<p>„I hope that Trump will get elected out of office and that is literally my only wish for the year,“ Whizzer huffed, „I can’t believe that horse has been set loose in a hospital for almost four years now.“<br/>„I hear that,“ Charlotte chuckled, „I think I will join Mendel and pray that I won’t freak out during finals. And I really want Marvin to say more sweet things about friendship!<br/>And maybe we could meet up a few times for board game nights or so?“</p>
<p>„Honestly, if the plan for the night doesn’t involve clubbing, I am in,“ Marvin snorted.<br/>„You literally just said that you are grateful that the girls forced you to go clubbing with them,“ Whizzer reminded him.<br/>„Yeah, because otherwise, we wouldn’t have gotten together, and now I don’t need to go clubbing ever again,“ he replied matter-of-factly, „Honestly guys, I can not think of one single thing that could happen in 2020 that would make me miss clubbing.“</p>
<p>„So, that’s your only resolution?“ Mendel asked.</p>
<p>Marvin stopped for a moment.<br/>Then, „Well, I got another thing, but you all have to promise to not make fun of me for saying it out loud.“<br/>„What are we, 12?“ Whizzer teased him, „Sure, we promise.“</p>
<p>„I found out what’s gonna be the spring musical this year,“ the theater nerd continued, „And I think I will audition.“</p>
<p>„Dear God, <em>finally</em>,“ Trina called and reached for her glass, „I drink to that.“<br/>„You really think that is not some garbage idea that sounded okay-ish in my head but is actually completely stupid?“ Marvin reassured himself.<br/>„Honestly, Marvin, I’ve been waiting for this moment for four years now.“</p>
<p>„Cheers to the next year, guys,“ Charlotte raised her glass, a smile on her face, „Cheers to friendship, love, and memories.“<br/>„Cheers to jobs, movie nights, and banana bread,“ Marvin joined.<br/>„Cheers to playing more music and driving one’s roommate insane,“ Mendel almost spilled his glass as he enthusiastically yanked it up in the air.<br/>„Cheers to the horse catcher,“ Trina’s sniffed, her eyes seemed to be wet again. Pure, emotional girl.<br/>„Cheers to game nights. And cheers to Marv being nice,“ Cordelia had a big grin on her face.<br/>„Cheers to Marvin becoming the next star on Broadway,“ Whizzer shot a glance at his boyfriend.<br/>„It’s just a show at a college!“<br/>„Did I fucking stutter?“</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Whoop, there it is!!!<br/>I planned this for soooo long, like really, for four or five months now. And now I can finally share this chapter with you all, and that makes me soooooo ridiculously happy!<br/>I now really wanna know if you maybe already expected this or if it was a complete surprise?? Very curious, so please don't be scared to share what you think!!! (Also how many quarantine references did you spot? I tried hard to bring in some of them, so I hope they are appreciated. 😤)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0053"><h2>53. End up together</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Who'd have thought that we two would end up as lovers?</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They stayed at Trina’s house until 2:30am. Her parents returned around half an hour earlier, so Marvin was certain that everyone at his home should be sleeping safe and soundly when he and Whizzer arrived back there.<br/>Which meant that he had to somehow get himself and Whizzer upstairs without making too much noise. Not that easy with the Brunette being more than just tipsy, but Marvin prayed that the walk home would do that some good.</p>
<p>And he also hoped that he would sober up a bit himself. Yes, Whizzer and the others (but mostly Whizzer) somehow managed to mix together a drink that Marvin actually liked. So he had three, which apparently meant that the world suddenly felt all lovey-dovey and that his sense of balance had lost him some time ago.<br/>He was glad for many reasons that he got to kiss Whizzer at midnight. For once because it was Whizzer, and he just had utterly fallen for Whizzer, but also because he could just lean against the Brunette instead of toppling over.<br/>The moment had been incredible, anyway. Around thirty seconds before midnight, Mendel was sprinting up to Trina’s bedroom to get a pack of sparklers that he brought with him. They somehow managed to fumble six of them out of the package and ignite them with Marvin’s lighter, all before the clock stroke midnight.</p>
<p>During that moment, Marvin was standing in socks on the sofa, holding onto Whizzer’s shoulder for balance. To be taller than his boyfriend for once, or something or whatever was going on in his mind at that moment, who could really tell?<br/>The cheer that escaped his mouth at midnight got choked by Whizzer’s lips when the photography major greedily pressed them onto his lover’s.<br/>Being taller than Whizzer when they kissed felt odd and unusual to Marvin, yet he wrapped his free arm around the not-anymore-taller boy. The latter’s right arm pulled him closer by his waist.<br/>„Happy New Year, Marv,“ he then brought out hoarsely after they parted again.<br/>„Happy New Year, Baby,“ Marvin grinned and leaned down to kiss him once again.</p>
<p>Now, another two and a half hours later, they were on their way back home, tumbling alongside. Their hands were intertwined because frankly, at this very moment Marvin really did not care if somebody he knew saw him now. So what, so they saw him, holding hands with his hot-as-fuck boyfriend, and what else?<br/>Their hands swung in between them, back and forth, back and forth, forth and back.</p>
<p>„Marv?“<br/>„Mh?“<br/>„I think what you said was really beautiful,“ Whizzer squeezed his hand, „And I am also really glad that we met that night, and every other occasion that we saw each other again, and everything that led to his very moment.“<br/>„God, now you’re getting philosophical,“ Marvin laughed but rubbed his thumb over Whizzer’s knuckle.<br/>„I’m just saying,“ the racquetball player raised his hands in defense, letting go of Marvin’s hand in the course of that. But he made up for it almost immediately but putting his arm around the shorter man’s shoulder.<br/>Marvin snuggled against his boyfriend’s body. Which was not exactly easy, with that ridiculously big coat he was wearing. Yet, he managed to slip his arm around Whizzer’s hips.</p>
<p>„Who would have thought that we’d get together? That we’d end up together? As lovers, even,“ Marvin asked and turned his head slightly.<br/>„Is that a rhetorical question or do you want a genuine response?“<br/>„It was meant to be rhetorical, but if you want to reply, then go ahead.“<br/>They took a turn to the left, Marvin’s house was less than five more minutes away.<br/>„Well, I knew that we’re gonna end up screwing after the first time we met.“<br/>„Charming.“<br/>„I wasn’t wrong.“<br/>„Fair,“ Marvin admitted.</p>
<p>He expected that to be Whizzer’s answer but he got proven wrong after a few more moments.<br/>„I first got the feeling that you might be different, that night when we did my photography project.“<br/>„What made you think that?“<br/>He shrugged.<br/>„I guess that was the first time I actually saw <em>you</em> and not just <em>that grumpy friend of my best friend’s girlfriend</em>.“<br/>„Now that’s a nice name for me,“ Marvin mumbled and snuggled closer.<br/>„What was the first time you thought that we actually could be… something?“<br/>„When you tried to kiss me in my bathroom, I guess. That’s when the thought first occurred, but I was pretty much in denial,“ he replied.<br/>„God, I almost forgot that happened,“ the tall Brunette chuckled, „I honestly don’t even know why I tried to kiss you, I didn’t realize I <em>liked</em> you until that night you slept in my dorm room.“<br/>„Probably because you were horny and lonely and wanted some intimacy,“ the theater nerd yawned.<br/>God, he really looked forward to just slip under the covers, his boyfriend snuggled close to his chest.<br/>„You’re not wrong, really.“<br/>„So you only tried to seduce me because I was, like, <em>there</em>?“<br/>„Well, you were there because I asked you to. I specifically asked <em>you</em>.“</p>
<p>„I like that thought,“ Marvin cracked a smile.<br/>„I’m glad you turned me down that night. Even though it did hurt bit, I gotta admit that,“ Whizzer said quietly.<br/>„Why?“<br/>„Do you think we’d have gotten together if we already hooked up back then?“<br/>„Yeah, probably not,“ he agreed.</p>
<p>„Sometimes I wonder what I did to deserve this. You. It’s silly if I’m being honest,“ the photography major admitted quietly and pulled Marvin even closer.<br/>„Same,“ his boyfriend laughed, „I don’t think I will ever stop asking myself that question.“<br/>„You’re such a sap, Marv.“<br/>„Who started this conversation, huh?“</p>
<p>By now, they had arrived at the house. With a dramatic sigh, Whizzer released Marvin from the embrace, while the older one fumbled for the keys in the pockets of his jacket.<br/>„Don’t whine, you’ll have me back in like five minutes, plus a cozy blanket and less clothing,“ Marvin commented and pulled out his keys.<br/>„I’m very looking forward to the last part in particular,“ the taller boy smirked.</p>
<p>A cold wind brushed through the silent neighborhood. The faint noise of the chimes that one of the neighbors had hanging in their porch sounded through the night, nothing else than that and both boy’s breaths were audible.<br/>Before he turned around to unlock the door, Marvin looked at his boyfriend again. Not even the wind could destroy the younger one’s hair, yet it did make Whizzer shiver. The tip of his nose and his cheeks were rosy from the cold.<br/>„What?“ he asked.<br/>„God, you’re pretty,“ Marvin whispered and leaned forward to connect their lips, gently cupping his face with his hands.<br/>Their kiss was gentle and slow and it made Marvin’s body tingle, even more than it usually did every time he and the pretty boy kissed.</p>
<p>„Listen, you know I love compliments, but it’s really fucking freezing and I am only wearing my leather jacket,“ Whizzer’s cold lips mumbled against his own.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A good thirty minutes later, they both finally settled in bed. Whizzer, as usual, wearing nothing but his boxers, while Marvin wore not just a sweatshirt but also some plaid pajama bottoms.<br/>(Both men knew that said pajama bottoms will come off soon, though.)<br/>Snuggled against his boyfriend’s chest, Whizzer was on his phone, editing some pictures for his Instagram feed. It was a mystery to Marvin why he would want to upload his <em>Happy New Year</em> post at 3am.</p>
<p>„Can I add this one?“ the wannabe-influencer asked and held the phone screen right under Marvin’s face. It showed one picture his mother took, the one where Whizzer kissed him on the cheek, „I can put a sticker over your face if that makes you more comfortable. Or I won’t use it at all, I, I got enough pictures from the night, anyway. Oh, I could use the adorable group selfie Trina took right after midnight, or the photo of Delia and me with the sparklers.“<br/>Marvin thought about it for a second. So, Whizzer really wanted to show him to the public, he was not ashamed or embarrassed for him. He wanted the ominous web to know about their relationship.</p>
<p>„Yeah, go for it. I don’t mind,“ he then replied. His eyes felt almost too heavy to keep them open.<br/>„Sure?“<br/>„Yes, sure,“ again, he yawned, „But put your phone away then. I’m old, it’s late, I want to sleep.“<br/>„I was kinda hoping for other things than sleep,“ Whizzer put his phone on the nightstand after a few more seconds, and turned around, his fingers promptly sliding under the fabric of Marvin’s sweatshirt.<br/>„What a surprise,“ he tried to hide his smile.<br/>„Is that a no?“<br/>„Obviously not, you dumbass, come here and kiss me again.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p><em>[photo]-[photo]-[photo]-[photo]</em><br/><strong>whiz.brown:</strong> cheers to friendship, banana bread, the horse catcher and my boyfriend and me being the most adorable couple around 🎆 🥂  (and i dont take criticism)</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0054"><h2>54. Invincible</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>"My name is Marvin Philipps and I'm gonna audition for the role of..."</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>„I’m not gonna do it,“ Marvin announced in a shaky voice, walking through the dorm room like a nervous dog during a thunderstorm.<br/>„Yes you will,“ Whizzer replied calmly from his bed, caught the baseball he had thrown in the air moments ago, and sat up to look at his boyfriend.<br/>„You can’t force me to.“<br/>„And I won’t, but we both know that you’re gonna audition.“<br/>„Maybe I don’t want to do it anymore. I lost interest! Ha!“<br/>Restlessly, the theater nerd sat down on Whizzer’s desk chair.</p>
<p>„You, losing interest in musical theater? Yeah, and I’m the King of England.“<br/>„God, Whizzer, I’m gonna be the biggest joke, compared to everyone else!“<br/>„Yeah, I highly doubt that,“ Whizzer shook his head.<br/>„Well, you’re not the director.“<br/>„But I have <em>eyes</em> and <em>ears</em> and I know that you can do it.“<br/>„I just won’t go there.“<br/>„Come on Baby, we all know that you’re gonna do it.“</p>
<p>„I know,“ Marvin groaned and jumped up from the chair again, just to let himself fall onto the bed next to Whizzer, „I’m just really nervous.“<br/>„You’re kidding! Never would have guessed,“ the younger one teased his boyfriend and put his arm around him, holding him securely, „Listen, you’re gonna kick some serious ass there. We all believe in you.“<br/>„I hate auditions. In sophomore year in high school, I wanted to audition for the musical one time, and I just got so nervous that I couldn’t go there.“<br/>„But it’s gonna be different this time, Marv,“ he ensured him and pressed a kiss onto his temple.<br/>„I mean, I can’t promise I won’t back off last minute,“ the older boy laughed faintly and buried his face in the crook of Whizzer’s neck.<br/>„But <em>I</em> can promise you that you’re gonna be mad at yourself if they play this show and you’re not in it because you didn’t even try.“<br/>„I’m the reasonable one in the relationship, why are you the one giving advice now?“ Marvin mumbled.<br/>„Because you can’t think straight right now, and sometimes even I have to be a good boyfriend, dumbass,“ Whizzer stroked through the theater nerd’s tousled hair.<br/>„Why should I, a gay man, think straight, after all?“ he mumbled.<br/>„Who are you and what did you do to my boyfriend?“ Whizzer laughed.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The last notes of the audition cut Marvin picked, faded away in the apartment.<br/>The singer himself, however, didn’t give himself much of a break.</p>
<p>„I gotta do the monologue one more time,“ Marvin stated and jumped up from his seat, in passing he took hold of the crinkled piece of paper that has been resting on the living room table for the last twenty minutes. Crinkled, because Marvin crumpled it up at least three different times alone today.<br/>„You think so?“ Whizzer tilted his head, „It seemed alright to me.“<br/>„<em>Alright</em> is not enough.“<br/>„Sweet Jesus, Baby, you were the one that said that it’s only a college show and not fucking Broadway.“<br/>„You forget that most kids that audition have been doing musical theater for almost their entire life, and were not held back by internalized homophobia.“<br/>„Baby, Sweetheart, Light of My Life, you need to <em>sit down</em> for a second and <em>breathe</em>.“<br/>„Wait, do you think I don’t have the right breathing technique while singing?“<br/>„What? No, that’s so not what I meant,“ Whizzer jumped up from the couch and walked towards his boyfriend. Gently, he put his hands onto his shoulders and looked him into the eyes. His body felt tense.<br/>„Listen, I know you’re nervous-“<br/>„At this point, I am not just nervous, I am fully stressed out.“<br/>„-But you can’t just practice the material twenty-four-seven.“</p>
<p>Marvin huffed.<br/>„Watch me.“<br/>„I’ve been for the last week, and I love seeing you performing but I definitely don’t love to see how you slowly lose your mind over this, okay? I’m gonna go and make you a cup of tea, we can order some takeout and watch a movie. Or a bootleg, if you’d rather do that.“<br/>„They’re called slime tutorials,“ the theater nerd mumbled, his body now relaxed slightly under Whizzer’s palms.<br/>„God, theater kids are so weird.“<br/>„You must know, you’re dating one.“</p>
<p>Slowly, the taller man lowered his hands, rubbing them over Marvin’s arms and eventually taking his hands in his own.<br/>„Listen, you’re gonna do great. I know, it’s easier said than done, but try not to think too much about the audition, okay?“<br/>„I definitely can’t promise anything,“ the older one sighed, interlacing their fingers and leaning his forehead against Whizzer’s chin, „You can order food and I can do the monologue and the song one last time?“<br/>„Fine. What do you wanna eat? Pizza?“<br/>„No, nothing with cheese. Dairy. Bad for the vocal cords.“</p>
<p>Eventually, they settled with Thai.<br/>Before Whizzer slept in that night, he felt Marvin toss and turn in the spot next to him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>„God, what did I get myself into,“ Marvin mumbled and leaned his head against the steering wheel.<br/>„You’ll do great, Baby, I promise,“ Whizzer ensured him, patting his boyfriend’s leg affectionately.<br/>„It’s easy for you to talk, you don’t have to get on stage in front of two dozen people you don’t know,“ he huffed.<br/>„And now imagine how it’s gonna be at opening night,“ Whizzer joked, but he only got a grim glance as a response.<br/>„That’s different,“ the theater nerd sighed, „<em>If</em> I get cast, I know that I apparently actually have the talent to do this. I’m still convinced I’m gonna be one big joke up there today.“<br/>„And I can assure you that you are the only person who thinks that.“</p>
<p>Whizzer leaned forward to press a kiss onto Marvin’s cheek.<br/>„I believe in you.“<br/>„That makes one of us.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Marviii🖤:</strong> I can’t do it, guys.<br/><strong>Charlotte👩🏽⚕️:</strong> Yes you can, Marvin.<br/><strong>Delia💞:</strong> You can do this!!! Break a leg 💝 🍀 <br/><strong>Me:</strong> told you, marv, were all behind you on this<br/><strong>Trina👛:</strong> We believe in you, Marvin.<br/><strong>Trina👛:</strong> We really do<br/><strong>Mend💡:</strong> You’re gonna do great!</p>
<p>„Is he okay?“ was the first thing Trina asked as she and Mendel approached Whizzer in front of the auditorium.<br/>„He’s super nervous,“ Whizzer admitted, „Not sure if he slept at all tonight.“<br/>„Well, he called me for another therapy session around 1am, and I tried to talk him down for like one and a half hours. By the way Whizzer, how did you not notice him talking on the phone at all?“<br/>„You never had to wake Whizzer up in the middle of the night and it really shows,“ Delia responded to that, now appearing behind the psychiatry major alongside her girlfriend, „Sleeps like a stone, that man.“</p>
<p>„Let’s go inside,“ Whizzer proposed, not really in the mood to defend himself.<br/>He did feel guilty for not being there more for Marvin yesterday night.<br/>„He also told me that you really do your best in comforting and encouraging him,“ Mendel said quietly to Whizzer on their way inside, as if he read his mind.<br/>„I mean, what was I supposed to do instead? Somebody had to stop him, otherwise, he’d still be singing the song and act out the dialogue again and again and again.“</p>
<p>The group sat down in the last row, mostly so that Marvin wouldn't spot them at first glance. He knew that Whizzer would be here, obviously, since they drove here together and Marvin knew that there was no way he could get Whizzer to go back to his own dorm room after dropping him off at campus. But Whizzer wasn’t sure if he expected the others to be here as well.<br/>The kid that was currently on was alright. He really wasn’t bad.<br/>But Marvin was better, Whizzer thought.</p>
<p>And then, his name got called.<br/>The poor boy looked just as lost on the big stage as he did the first time Whizzer forced him to go on stage, except that this time, there were more people watching than him.<br/>The last time, all it took was the spotlight to shine on his face. This time, he still seemed to shake a bit, when he introduced himself.</p>
<p>His smile seemed forced and insecure.<br/>„Hello everybody, my name is Marvin Philipps and I’m auditioning for the role of Mark Cohen.“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>And everything went well. The monologue that he went through about twenty times (at least, Whizzer didn’t want to know how often he did the monologue when he wasn’t around) captured all of their friends and left especially Cordelia in awe.<br/>„He’s so good!“ she mouthed at Whizzer, who just responded with a grin and a nod.<br/>It only got better with the song. Until that moment, Whizzer kind of forgot that neither Delia nor Mendel ever heard Marvin singing.<br/>This whole time, Delia basically just rooted for him because she was a good friend and just simply believed Whizzer when he told her that his boyfriend actually had talent.</p>
<p>When Marvin left the stage again, he had a wide grin on his face. He wasn’t shaking anymore when he strode down the aisle of the auditorium, now looking around in the room instead, seemingly searching for Whizzer.<br/>The tall Brunette got off his seat, so that Marvin could spot him better, and made a few steps towards him.</p>
<p>When they were less than five feet apart from each other, Whizzer opened his mouth to congratulate Marvin, but he didn’t get to talking since the older boy just jumped forward and pulled his boyfriend down into a kiss.<br/>He felt the theater nerd grin heavily against his lips, and after a short moment of surprise, he buried his hands in Marvin’s hair.</p>
<p>„What was that for?“ Whizzer then asked amused after a few seconds, his face only inches apart from Marvin’s.<br/>„I feel fucking invincible,“ Marvin’s lips were still pulled into a grin, „Can’t I just kiss my boyfriend in public?“<br/>„I’m not complaining, but I brought some more people that might wanna talk to you as well,“ returning the grin, Whizzer nodded towards the group that still sat huddled together in the last row a few meters behind them, „You don’t want to let your fans wait, do you?“<br/>„Very funny, pretty boy,“ Marvin playfully rolled his eyes and took the other man’s hand in his own, interlacing their fingers, before making his way over to the others.</p>
<p>„Oh my God, Marv, I am so proud of you,“ Trina whisper-cried, tears sparkling in her eyes, and flung her arms around her best friend’s neck.<br/>„I didn’t know you were that good!“ Cordelia agreed, capturing the theater nerd in the next embrace, only seconds after Trina released him.<br/>„Kudos, man. Kudos,“ Charlotte nodded and gently nudged his shoulder with her own.<br/>Mendel just smiled appreciatively.<br/>„You did amazing,“ he then said, „And I am very proud of you.“</p>
<p>But it looked like he didn’t exclusively refer to the audition.</p>
<p>They stayed in the auditorium until the very end of auditions, looking at the other kids that were auditioning. In Whizzer’s eyes, of course, nobody was as good as his boyfriend.<br/>The theater nerd had his arm around his shoulder the entire time, Whizzer’s hand held onto Marvin’s until they left the auditorium to get dinner together.</p>
<p>(Not to mention that their fingers were interlaced again the second they were walking alongside each other.)</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>The next one is gonna be the Epilogue, so three days from now this project will be officially finished!<br/>(Well, for you. I'll probably spend another month or so just editing it over and over because, just like Alexander Hamilton and Angelica Schuyler, I will never be satisfied...)<br/>See y'all then. :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0055"><h2>55. Epilogue - At this very table</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Paradise.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I want to thank all of you who read this and stayed until the very end. Like honestly, I'd have understood if someone just stopped reading at some point, half of this had literally no other purpose than to be fluffy and cute.<br/>This little thing here started out as a silly little idea I had at 1am, and it took me almost exactly six months of planning, writing, and editing to finish it. (Like, so much planning... I had a whole document that just consisted of ideas for the plotline... I even made individual playlists on Spotify for each character to listen to while writing,, but eventually, I only listened to <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2zRsVI2Rgj8DJfIA9v7Y5J?si=23MiY-I3QiqhNbk1zHhMQA">Marvin's</a> and <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2nxLlTSOoLFpVtQweYMAut?si=MNtroPZ8QOa1jFUNMslgyA">Mendel's</a> for some reason)</p><p>I hope that you all enjoy this very last chapter of this fic!<br/>Stay safe!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Marvin wasn’t somebody who went to night clubs, really. Actually, he was glad that the only two times he went to one, were the night he saved his future boyfriend from getting harassed, and the night they first kissed. In fact, when the other’s asked him to join them for a night out, he was very glad to use the iconic <em>Sorry, I have rehearsal</em> excuse.</p><p>When he came home on Saturday, he found an empty apartment, which made sense since it was only 9pm. Even though he was surprised not to find Whizzer in the bathroom, still doing his hair or makeup. But then he received the pictures from Trina, which showed the five people he considered his closest friends getting ready in Charlotte’s single dorm room.<br/>
He may or may not have stretched his excuse, saying that rehearsal ended not until 11pm so that they’d stop trying to bug him about him joining them after one whole day of singing, dancing, and acting.</p><p>He put his phone on the counter, right next to the bowl for the keys, while he took off his jacket. Whizzer bullied him into buying this new one, that would keep him warm but not look as ridiculous as his winter coat, especially now that mother nature knocked on the east coast’s door, carefully holding the delicate spring in her hands.</p><p>Marvin really was never a key chain kind of person. To be precise, there were not more than three personalized items on his key ring:<br/>
A key chain his parents gifted him after he graduated, with a little picture of the family.<br/>
A key chain that Charlotte brought him (Trina had the same) from a family vacation in 2018.<br/>
And a key chain that had the words <em>no day but today</em> engraved. It had been a Valentine’s Day gift from Whizzer, who almost broke out in tears when he learned that Marvin brought him a little manual coffee maker, and all he had was some key chain he bought on Esty.</p><p>The lack of key chains made the apartment keys kind of easy to lose or forget. Marvin made it a habit to always put them into the little bowl. Whizzer never did that, which was the main reason why Marvin had to open the door for him about twice a week. („Let me guess, your keys are in your other jacket?“ - „Aw, baby, you just know me so well!“)<br/>
They did not move in together officially. Whizzer only had the spare keys to Marvin’s apartment, the bathroom was occupied with a ton of his little bottles and jars, and they slept together in Marvin’s bedroom around five days of the week.<br/>
Charlotte tried to tell him many times that Whizzer pretty much moved in with him by now, but they just never really decided on that.</p><p>Marvin did think about it sometimes. Mainly when he woke up on a Tuesday morning, Whizzer still sleeping peacefully in his arms (or groaning for Marvin to silence the stupid alarm clock). When they had breakfast together, had their morning routine („Listen Whizzer, I love showering with you, but we are late already.“), held hands on their way to the car, and arrived on campus together.<br/>
On the rare days that he didn’t wake up with the pretty boy next to him, he wondered if he should ask Whizzer to just stay permanently. But for now, the common sleepovers and the domestic routines were enough.<br/>
Not just enough, to Marvin they felt like paradise.</p><p>He was almost 90% sure that Whizzer would just move in with him for their senior year. It just made sense, so that they’d just share the rent for the apartment instead of Whizzer paying for the dorm room he rarely used anymore.</p><p>The theater nerd took off his shoes and brought his rehearsal bag into the living room, where he put it down next to the desk. A tiny, yellow post-it stuck on the lamp. Whizzer’s handwriting was neater than you’d probably expect from him. And, mostly because he was cheesy and knew that it made Marvin roll his eyes, the ‘i’s had little hearts as dots.</p><p>
  <strong>don’t stay awake for me, you will probably wake up anyway when i come to bed and steal the blanket. xo</strong>
</p><p>Marvin cracked a smile and put the note in a little box he had in one of the desk drawers, hoping that Whizzer would never find out that Marvin kept all of the little notes that his boyfriend wrote him whenever he wanted to inform him on stuff.<br/>
One day, Marvin questioned why Whizzer didn’t just text him.<br/>
„Because my way is more vintage and so much more aesthetic, obviously,“ the younger one had explained as if it was the most logical thing in the world.</p><p>Rehearsal had been draining today. They’d been working on the second act, which wasn’t as much dancing as the first one, but just very demanding emotionally and vocally. <em>Halloween</em> had always been one of his favorite numbers in the whole show, so he always wanted it to be perfect. Even in the second run-through of the day, the one for which the director always announces not to interrupt them mid-scene this time, but never held onto that promise.<br/>
Marvin made himself something for dinner really quickly, took a long shower, and then settled into bed even before 11pm, like the old person he felt like at this point.<br/>
Only half an hour ago he received even more photo’s from Mendel’s truck, meaning that they must have been on their way then. And Marvin was already wearing his pajamas, resting on the comfortable mattress, snuggled under his blanket.</p><p>Whizzer was not wrong with his prediction to wake Marvin up when he came home.<br/>
(Whenever Marvin thought about the word <em>Home</em> and how naturally he just counted Whizzer as a part of it, a warmth spread in his belly and his lips curled into a smile.)<br/>
However, he didn’t wake up because his boyfriend stole his blanket, but rather because of the noise he made by simply entering the apartment.</p><p>Calmly, Marvin listened to Whizzer through the ajar bedroom door. He took off his jacket and shoes, he obviously did not put his keys in the bowl. Then he stumbled into the bathroom, and only a few moments after that, the rushing of water in the shower was audible.<br/>
Now in a semi-sleep, Marvin calmly listened to all the noises that reminded him that he was not alone in the little apartment, but that his incredibly attractive boyfriend was literally on the other side of the wall.</p><p>When the pretty boy entered the bedroom, Marvin pretended to be asleep. He heard Whizzer climb into the bed (he was sure that Whizzer tried to be as quiet as he could, but he didn’t exactly do a great job), and eventually he felt the other man’s body snuggling against his own.<br/>
Marvin let out a muffled sigh and put his arm around the tall Brunette, pulling him close.</p><p>„You’re awake!“ Whizzer whispered excitedly and awkwardly stretched to press a kiss onto Marvin’s lips.<br/>
„You didn’t throw up, did you?“ Marvin mumbled, tilting his head away.<br/>
„I didn’t. And I just brushed my teeth!“<br/>
Only after that Marvin agreed to a kiss.</p><p>„Did I wake you?“ Whizzer asked with a slur, resting his chin on Marvin’s chest and looking up to the theater lead, who had his eyes closed again already.<br/>
„You’re not exactly quiet, Baby,“ he cracked a smile.<br/>
The drunk man gasped in a dramatic manner.<br/>
„Does that mean you don’t like me anymore?“<br/>
„It means I like you even though you interrupt my valuable night’s sleep.“<br/>
„Because I’m the man of your dreams!“ Whizzer grinned proudly.<br/>
Marvin snorted.<br/>
„Whatever.“</p><p>The drunk man leaned upwards to press another kiss onto Marvin’s cheek and then rested his head on his shoulder. His left arm was bedded on Marvin’s chest, the fingers playing with some light-brown curls.<br/>
„I know I am, and I know because you are mine, and if I wasn’t yours then the world just would be unfair,“ he then yawned.<br/>
„Good night, Whizzer,“ Marvin smiled and turned his head to lean his lips against Whizzer’s forehead.<br/>
The last thing he felt before he drifted off to sleep again, was Whizzer’s manicured fingers, buried in his hair.</p><p> </p><p>They woke up in a similar position as the one they fell asleep in.<br/>
However, Marvin was slightly confused to be awoken by an alarm clock instead of being able to just sleep in. Usually, Marvin woke up not later than nine o’clock, but since rehearsals started he found himself sleeping until 11am at some times. Whizzer was not unhappy about that.</p><p>Apologetically, Marvin mumbled something about having forgotten to turn off the alarm for today, without really paying attention to neither the phone nor the actual time.<br/>
„Nah, it’s not your alarm,“ Whizzer groaned and blindly (his face was still buried in Marvin’s sweatshirt) groped after the phone, „<em>Urgh</em>, God, <em>why</em> is it already 10?“<br/>
„What makes you, Whizzer Brown, wake up at 10am on a Sunday morning?“ Marvin asked amused, rubbing his eyes. He had almost eleven hours of sleep, he felt great.</p><p>„You don’t have to say that it’s morning if you already mentioned the <em>am</em> behind the number.“<br/>
„I know, I just wanted to emphasize that’s just so early for you.“<br/>
„Well, yesterday, Trina proposed we should have a hangover breakfast today,“ the younger one explained sleepily, „Do you want to join us? Even if you’re not hungover?“<br/>
„Well, you need a driver anyway.“<br/>
„I know how public transportation works, asshole.“<br/>
„I’ll come with you. I want to hear about all the embarrassing stuff you did yesterday night.“</p><p>„You’re a dick,“ Whizzer mumbled but still leaned in to kiss his boyfriend good morning, „If I wasn’t too hungover for that anyway, you would have now played your chance for morning sex.“<br/>
„Shall I bring my princess a glass of water to cure the awful remains of excessive alcohol use?“<br/>
„That, and pain killers. Please,“ the princess pouted.</p><p>Marvin sighed and crawled out of bed, heading straight to the kitchen to fill water into a glass.<br/>
„I forgot that that meant I’d lose my favorite pillow,“ Whizzer lamented.</p><p><em>Yes</em>, Marvin thought, <em>still paradise</em>.</p><p>It took Whizzer four glasses of water to be able to sit up, and one and a half headache pills to get out of bed.<br/>
„You don’t even learn from your mistakes,“ Marvin teased him as he got dressed.<br/>
„And you still dress as shitty as you did when we met, you don’t even consider all my advice,“ the photography major rubbed his temples with two fingers, his eyes squeezed shut.<br/>
„You don’t even see what I am wearing!“<br/>
„I don’t have to look at it to know that it’s hideous, Baby.“<br/>
„Looks like you don’t want to wear my favorite hoodie today, that’s great, so I can wear it myself?“<br/>
„Well, I did not say <em>that</em>.“</p><p> </p><p>„Are you <em>all</em> hungover?“ the theater nerd asked his friends even before he sat down at the table in the little breakfast place, looking into everyone’s face one after another.<br/>
Well, judging by the gazes they threw at him, the answer clearly was <em>Yes</em>.<br/>
„Honestly, don’t think you can talk yourself out of it the next time. You won’t have rehearsal forever, the spring shows will be over at some point,“ Charlotte mumbled and nipped on her black coffee.<br/>
„Charles, they don’t just do one show per year,“ Marvin chuckled and sat down. They already ordered their usual beverages for Whizzer and him, as he now noticed gladly.<br/>
„We still missed you yesterday, it’s just not the same without our beloved Marv,“ Cordelia insisted, „Next time we will just pick out a date on which you don’t have rehearsal.“<br/>
„Good luck with that, honestly,“ Whizzer mumbled, „I currently get to see my boyfriend around two hours a day, at this point. But that’s what you get for dating a star, I guess.“<br/>
He let out a dramatic sigh and leaned his head onto Marvin’s shoulder.</p><p>„How was rehearsal?“ Mendel asked genuinely.<br/>
„Exhausting. But good, actually! I’m finally off-book, that just makes things a lot easier,“ the oldest one of the group said.<br/>
„I’m still impressed by how many lines you managed to memorize,“ Trina mumbled, her head resting on her palm, her eyes were half-closed. She actually met up with Marvin for him to properly go through his lines. He tried it with Whizzer but turns out that, no matter how dramatic a scene might be, they’d always end up heavily making out on either the sofa or in the bed. (And against the kitchen counter, one time.)<br/>
„That’s the biz,“ Marvin sighed dramatically and shrugged.<br/>
„Oh my <em>God</em>, who taught you these words, grandpa?“ Whizzer snorted.</p><p>„Hey Marv, your birthday is March 27th, right?“ Cordelia asked out of nowhere.<br/>
„Uh, yeah,“ the man answered, his brows pulled together, „Why are you asking?“<br/>
„Well, your birthday is the upcoming one, and I think we should plan something!“<br/>
„We still got more than one month.“<br/>
„You clearly don’t know Delia’s love for party planning,“ Mend pulled his lips into a smile, „One month might be just about enough.“<br/>
„Well, that is why my parties are always the best,“ Delia stated, sipping on her coffee mug.<br/>
„Please, guys, I don’t want a big party. I have like five people in my life that tolerate me, and all of them are sitting at this very table.“</p><p>„Come on Baby, don’t be so hard on yourself. Your parents love you, too.“<br/>
„Whizzer, you never disappoint me with your talent to roast me for no apparent reason.“</p><p>„Well, if you don’t want to invite many people, we could also go out-“ Charlotte threw in but got interrupted by the oldest one.<br/>
„Charles, I’m not gonna go clubbing on my 22nd birthday,“ Marvin groaned.<br/>
„I’m just saying! You don’t need to plan a lot for that...“<br/>
„Charlotte, <em>no</em>.“<br/>
„How about a board game night, then?“ Mendel proposed, „You wanted us to have some of them anyway, didn’t you, Char?“<br/>
„Board games? What are we, 12?“ Whizzer snorted, „I propose drinking games.“<br/>
„And Cards Against Humanity!“ Trina added.<br/>
„I mean, you can turn every board game into a drinking game if you’re creative enough,“ Delia said, browsing through the menu that was brought by the waiter.<br/>
„All of you are hungover, yet you are talking about drinking again?“ Marvin pointed out eventually, „I thought that you were supposed to be all like <em>urgh, I’ll never drink alcohol ever again</em> by now?“<br/>
„We collectively gave up on lying to ourselves,“ Whizzer shrugged.</p><p>„The 27th is a Friday, so we’re just gonna hang out at Marvin’s, getting drunk and playing board games?“ Trina had his phone already pulled out and the calendar opened.<br/>
„Sorry to disappoint you, but I won’t be able to drink a lot, really. And I’ll need to throw you all out at 11pm. I need to go to bed early that night.“<br/>
„For what? Has Whizzer something planned for the Saturday?“ Delia tilted her head.<br/>
„I fucking wish!“ the photography major mumbled.<br/>
„No. Well, he wanted to. But I have rehearsal.“</p><p>As always whenever Marvin used that iconic line, the table broke out in a collective groan.</p><p>„What?“ Marvin laughed, „You wanted me to audition.“<br/>
„We didn’t think it through,“ Charlotte admitted, „But well, obviously we’re happy for you.“<br/>
„I swear to God, Marv,“ Trina sighed and locked her phone again, „It’s like High School all over again.“</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Aaand it's a wrap!<br/>Make sure to leave a comment down below, if you want to tell me how you liked this project overall. I'd really appreciate it!!!<br/>And if you enjoyed this fic, feel free to check out my <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lixel/works">other projects</a> and/or leave a user subscription.<br/>Y'all are also dearly invited to follow me on my social media (<a href="https://www.instagram.com/hometownforest/">Instagram</a>, <a href="https://nichtsmotiviert.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a>, <a href="https://vm.tiktok.com/JFMjneD/">TikTok</a>) and honestly if you ever wanna geek out about musicals with some rando fanfic writer,,,, just DM me there..</p><p>Thank you all for being a part of this journey!<br/>Lots of love!<br/>~ Lixel</p><p>(I will now start to edit this project over and over again because just like Alexander Hamilton, I a) write like I'm running out of time and b) will never be satisfied.)</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Let me know what you think!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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